Naruto Unlimited
by Soritia
Summary: Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura leave for a suicide mission. Have our young heros died so soon? or is it all part of a larger scheme? not a crossover.
1. The End

Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine, sadly Sue me and you will get nothing, NOTHING!  
  
A few things first, as of this moment chapter 230 has been released, and, because I cannot see the future (poo!), that's where I'm getting my info from. This story takes place around a year after chapter 230; so I assumed that Sasuke has left for Orochimaru's Penthouse and returned, and Sakura has lost her Sasuke complex and learnned summoning slugs, healing jutsu and super strength from Tsunade. That's my angle, congrats, now you know. Enough chatter! Let's move on to the story!  
  
Chapter 1: The End  
  
Even Naruto, with his beyond-basic memory, could pinpoint the exact moment when the three of them came to that conclusion. As Sakura knelt there under a frigid, overcast sky, as the other two stood over her like veterans at a memorial, her hand traced the outline of her parents names etched into a block of stone. Two months had passed since the attack that left the Team 7 with one more thing in common.  
  
Sasuke had barely been back four months when Orochimaru attacked, coming to reclaim his "stolen property" as he put it. Orochimaru's plan went just about as well as anyone would expect. He came, he smashed, he got his ass kicked by three newly promoted chunin. The battle raged long and cruel and when the fight finally drew to a close, the victor, as Kakashi-sensei always said, was teamwork. Orochimaru fled, clinging to his life by his short, scruffy, blonde hair, taking the lives of many Konoha villagers along for the ride, including Sakura's parents.  
  
The three of them stared blankly at the tablet in silence for a while.

Sasuke's head sank as he stared at Sakura's hunched back, cold muddy guilt clogging his arteries. If he hadn't come back, none of this would have happened. If he hadn't come back, Sakura wouldn't have had to feel the burden of loneliness.

"Sakura, Naruto." He mumbled softly. Dark clouds circled overhead like vultures, ready to piss rain on them. "I'm leaving Konoha."

"What?" Naruto exclaimed. After all the trouble they went through to bring him back...

"Don't be an idiot." Sakura whispered into the cold grave markers. "It's not your fault."

"He's going to come back for me." Sasuke turned his nose to the sky and let the wind toss his hair around. "More people are going to die because of me."

A wet drop hit his forehead protector, then his shoulder.

"Same here..." Naruto whispered absent mindedly, visions of the Akatsuki, Itachi and Kisame surfaced in his mind as the rain flattened his hair.

"Sasuke," he glared with his signature, concrete determination at the other. "If you're leaving, I'm coming with you."

Sakura stood up, pink hair plastered to the curves of her face with water.

"You two," her voice shook and she hunched against the downpour. "Are you both going to leave me alone too?" The letters of "Haruno" on gray monument in front of her caught the drizzle and twisted the waterfall as the rain caressed down the grave's face.

Sasuke grinned spitefully.

"Fine, you can come too."

"Do you really think it'll be that simple to leave?" Sakura continued. "Even if we get passed Godaime, Orochimaru can still attack the village to lure us back."

"That's true." Sasuke shivered as his clothes soaked through. From what he could see of Sakura's cheek, she smiled.

A splotch of rain hit her face and arched down the curve of her cheek. Sakura turned toward them, scraping wet hair out of her face.

"I have an idea."

The boys glanced at her uneasily.

"But we're going to have to 'die' for it."  
  
-  
  
The next day, Godaime called a meeting of Konoha's ninja, levels chuunin and up. She stood solemnly at a podium and addressed her audience.  
  
"Shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, we have struck difficult times. This latest attack by Orochimaru has added an increasing burden upon us, even though we were victorious. Our village has been all but crushed under the weight of his snakes, our numbers have declined by 65 percent, and, if it wasn't for skill and courage of some unlikely heroes (she glanced at Naruto for a moment) we might not have been so fortunate. This is the second of such attacks in the last year and a half. If this continues, Konoha will fall."  
  
A shaken murmur arose from the crowd.  
  
"For this reason, we cannot afford to sit quietly. For the last two months, our ANBU teams have been scouting the Fire/Sound border, and we have finally come across Orochimaru's base of operations. Our aim is simple. While Orochimaru is recovering from his injuries, we step in and take him out. I will not lie to you; this is a one way trip, but a success will mean the end of a heartless regime that threatens to collapse our country. Who amongst you is willing to accept this challenge?" Almost before the sentence completed, Naruto was out of his seat.  
  
"Sit down Naruto, you dumb-ass." The Hokage berated, "Didn't you hear me? This mission is suicide. Stop playing the damn hero."  
  
"Shut up, you stupid old hag! I don't give a damn if the mission's a suicide. I have every right to accept it if I wanna!"  
  
"What did you just call me, brat!? I don't care that you're a ninja of this village; you're not even old enough to drink! I'm not sticking you in a team to go die."  
  
"You don't need to stick me in a damn team! I have my own team!"  
  
"What-?"  
  
"That's right." A new voice echoed throughout the hall. Sasuke and Sakura both stood up from their seats in various parts of the auditorium. "We're going too."  
  
A chorus of voices broke out in protest, but one voice stood out from the rest and made the others shut up.  
  
"Absolutely not!" Kakashi shot up from the crowd, fuming. "Do you three honestly think I'm going to let you kill yourselves-?"  
  
"Shut up, Kakashi-sensei, this doesn't concern you." Naruto threw a cold-killer glare down the stands at his teacher, letting Sasuke finish his sentence.  
  
"This matter was decided long before this meeting."  
  
"What?" Godaime cried confused.  
  
"It's our fault that Orochimaru came here in the first place and it's our fault that he got away." Sakura spoke softly. "This mission couldn't have come at a better time, because to be honest, we were planning on leaving anyway. Please, Hokage-sama."  
  
"Forget that, we're going whether she wants us to or not!" Naruto bellowed.  
  
Confronted by their decision, and three large pairs of determined eyes, Godaime had no choice but to accept them for the mission.  
  
"Then I'm going too." Kakashi announced proudly.  
  
"No." Sasuke put out his teacher's proposal like a cheap cigarette. "As you've heard, Konoha lost 65 percent of its force. You're needed here." Sasuke flashed a rare smile (and most of the crowd swooned.) "Don't worry. We can take care of Orochimaru."  
  
With its players decided, the conference cleared, leaving a bad after taste in the mouth of the Konohakagure.  
  
-  
  
Many people came to see Team 7 off, mainly friends, admirers and the Hokage, who approached Naruto as he turned sadly away from Iruka-sensei. As Ino and Sakura screamed at each other and as Sasuke drown in a pile of farewell presents from fans, Naruto and his former teacher had done nothing, just stood there and looked eye to eye, both in agreement that no words would ever make the moment okay. What do you say before you die? The important things. But what is "important"? Neither knew the answer.  
  
"Naruto." The Hokage held out her hand. "The necklace. I want it back." Her eyes were stern and serious, a look that didn't fit her at all.  
  
"Hell no. I won this fair and square. If you want it back, rip it off my cold, dead corpse."  
  
The three of them turned their backs to the village they were born and raised in and just before they started off, Naruto raised his arm to the side and extended his thumb upward.  
  
"See you later, Iruka-sensei."  
  
"Yeah, see you."  
  
-  
  
Happy hour hit its prime time at a small bar deep in the village, except that few people looked happy. The entire place reeked of broken promises and regrets, as Kakashi pointed out to Jiraiya. The two sat at the bar, trying to think of other things besides Team 7, but, in the end, there was nothing else to talk about.  
  
"Where did I go wrong?" Kakashi squeeze a bottle of sake. It was fresh, unopened; it seemed so pointless to drink when he could just tighten his fist around it, again and again.  
  
"Don't do that." Jiraiya lectured, but made no attempt to stop him; the man looked drunk enough already and he hadn't even taken a swig. "You're going to break it."  
  
"Why does everyone close to me disappear?" Kakashi whispered.  
  
"Blaming yourself isn't going to help." Jiraiya sipped his sake peaceably. "Trust me, I know."  
  
"It's easier."  
  
"Of course it is, but it's not the truth. If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I should've gotten Naruto to the academy faster. I should've killed Orochimaru while I had the chance." Jiraiya looked down at Kakashi, who was still squeezing the bottle, then at the ceiling.  
  
"I did the same thing when Yondaime died, blaming myself, 'Why wasn't I there?', 'Where did it all go wrong?' because it was easier than admitting the truth. Kakashi, the truth is there is no one to blame. Stuff happens because stuff happens. People die because people die."  
  
"They're not dead yet."  
  
"Right, Tsunade said it would take them three days to get there and set up the explosives. That leaves us what?"  
  
"12 minutes." Kakashi squeezed the bottle tighter.  
  
"Right."  
  
Somewhere to the northeast, along the Fire/Sound border, a structure bloomed with the ferocity of a demon. The explosion smothered the inconspicuous building and, miles away, Kakashi's sake bottle shattered.

* * *

Author's Notes: Thank you all for reading my first fanfic ever! It was sort of rushed, I know, but I had to get Team 7 out as quickly as possible. Other chapters will be longer and more boring, trust me.  
If there is something you don't like about it,the format, the style, etc. please tell me. I won't take it personally, I swear.  
Please respond, should I continue this? I have a feeling that this is going to be a long story, and if it's crap then I don't want to waste my time, and your time, writing it all out. Should I keep going?  
Thanks again!  
  
P.S. This document editor sux.


	2. Revelation

Disclaimers: Naruto's not mine.  
Isn't that dandy... -.-  
  
Yay! On to chapter two! Thank you sooo much to everyone who reviews! Seriously, I loves you guys!  
  
Chapter 2: Revelation  
  
The dedicated team of Kakashi, Shizune, Shino, and Anko, accompanied by several ANBU and Hunter-Nin, arrived at the explosion site several days later with the sole purpose of retrieving the bodies of the former Team 7 and Orochimaru.

"Are you sure your okay with this, Shino-kun?" Shizune asked sensitively.

"What do you mean?"

"Coming with us to find bodies…"

"My clan's insect techniques are equally vital to finding the bodies as Kakashi's dogs are. I'm merely filling in for my father, who is out on another mission."

"That's not what I meant." Shino descended casually into the ash and brimstone remnants of the complex.

"It's just death, Shizune-san. I'm not scared of death."

"Strange kid." Anko scoffed as she began to follow after him, then turned sharply to Kakashi. "but it's you I'm most concerned about."

Kakashi gave her a cold stare.

"Are you sure you need to be here? Are sure you _want_ to be here?"

Kakashi pulled a scroll from his vest pocket.

"There's nowhere else I'd rather be." He began the rhythmic motions of the hand seals.  
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Out of nowhere sprang eight dogs, all of various breeds.

"Spread out and search for the sent of Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, or Orochimaru. Call out if you find anything, but don't touch it!" With a bark, Kakashi's minions scattered.

Within seconds, a reply echoed from the deep reaches of the ruin.

"Anko, Shizune, we have work to do."

The three followed the barking to a collapsed wall. A few ANBU and Hunter-Nin were already there, ready to push the wall up.

"1… 2…"

The three jounin braced themselves for what they were about to see; the crushed forms of people they'd come to love, missing limbs, burnt and mangled. Blood, violence, the horrors of war, this was everyday for such high-ranking soldiers; and somehow, they never got use to it.

"3!"

The wall section rose like the dead and fell to the side, sending ash billowing into the air. Shizune covered her eyes. Anko bit her lip. Kakashi glared and leaned in closer, expecting to see the rotting corpses of his students staring back at him.

For a few minutes, there was silence as the group took in the scene.

"What the hell…?" One of the ANBU exclaimed, as she bent down and pulled Naruto's signature orange jacket from the dusty heap.

"… It's just their clothes…"

Sure enough, lying there on the ground was a pile of clothes, Sasuke's blue tunic and wrist warmers, Sakura's red and white over-dress and green capris, Naruto's complete orange set, but no sign of their owners. The laundry was dusty and covered with significant amounts of blood; blood which Kakashi's dogs confirmed to belonging to the three. Shizune bent down and started shifting the clothes around.

"Shizune," Anko protested. "What are you doing?"

"It's not here." She replied.

"What's not?"

"Shodaime's necklace. I told Tsunade-sama I'd bring it back."

"No forehead protectors either." Kakashi pointed out.

A gust of wind tossed Anko's hair around like a child.

"This is so bizarre."

"Oiiii!" The grouped turned to find Shino waving at them.

"What you find, Shino?" Anko called as the three sprinted over.

"Take a look at this." He pointed to several dead Sound ninja sprawled on the ground. They looked like all the other corpses in the area, except for one major flaw.

"They're naked…" Anko said. Well, not entirely, only the outer stuff was gone. The undergarments were less scorched then their skin, telling the spectators the clothing didn't burn off.

"Another thing," Shino said, "I couldn't find anything connecting to Orochimaru. Not even anything from his right-hand man, what's-his-name."

"Kabuto." Kakashi answered as he knelt near the dead.

Shizune pulled a pen and scroll from her vest.

"We'd better report this to Tsunade-sama."

In the end, the report filed by Kakashi, Shizune, Anko and Shino listed 48 dead, all Sound ninja, with the absence of their given targets. A considerable amount of Team 7 blood, particularly Sasuke's, was found all over the exploded compound, enough of which to constitute them as dead. As for Orochimaru, although there were signs that he'd been in the area, the salvage team found nothing tying him to death. It was assumed that Orochimaru, and his side-kick Kabuto, ran off with the bodies of Team 7, in disguise, and Godaime was forced to label them as Still-At-Large.  
  
_An immense field of flowers… Where am I exactly? It stretches on for miles and miles… I can smell ramen. Who is that? She's just standing there… waiting for me? What a pretty white dress. She's like an angel. Now she's holding out her hand…_

"Yes Sakura-chan, let's cross over together!"

"Wake up, Dumb-ass!"

THWACK

The tranquil vision disappeared in a swirl of nausea and pain. Something tasted funny. Naruto opened his eyes to find his face buried in a hole.

"Owwww…."

The lump on his head explained it all. He picked himself up, spat out the dirt in his mouth and looked around. The makeshift campground wasn't perfect, but no one was complaining. A small fire burned in the center of petite circle of trees, upon which a bubbling pot rested. Across from Naruto, Sakura knelt over a still form. Her disheveled hair fell abstractly over her neck and the back of her mesh undershirt. The knit texture arched down to the small of her back and connected neatly with the standard Sound Village pants, pulled tight over her firm, rounded…

"Naruto!" She glared at him over her shoulder, face red, and shook her fist. "Do you want another pounding!?"

_Damn, she's good…_

"WELL!?"

"N-No, leave me alone!"

"Then get off your ass and find us some food!"

Naruto stared at the boiling pot on the fire.

"Then what's that?!"

"I'm disinfecting needles and string. Sasuke's stitches are coming out."

Naruto leaned in closer to look at his comrade. Sasuke lay on a bed of dry leaves, covered in bandages. His breathing dragged heavily through his chest and his skin was paler than normal. Sakura unwrapped a bloody strip from his left leg, revealing a mass of neatly lined stitches, tracing the full circumference of his calf. She smiled. Not a bad job, considering how hard it was to reattach.  
  
In the aftermath of the explosion, Sakura was surprised to see that they were still alive, in pieces, but alive nether less. She, herself, was in the best shape, no more than a couple fractured ribs and some bruising. Seconds before detonation, Naruto and Sasuke had flung themselves over her (male instinct, she guessed) protecting her from the blast. She assessed their condition as she pulled the two boys from the rubble. Naruto was conscious, but was missing his right hand, and his right shoulder was dislocated. Sasuke, who was worst off, was slowly dying without his right arm and half of his leg. Sakura shoved blood stopping pills at both, and, ignoring their own wounds, she and Naruto went on an Easter egg hunt for their missing limbs.

After three days straight of chugging soldier pills, Sakura had managed to reattach all the missing parts correctly and sew up all the vital wounds. Even, after all that trauma, Naruto healed within hours, making Sakura all the more confused, but was too sleep deprived to care. She was just happy to be alive.

"You think he'll wake up soon?" Naruto wondered aloud.

Sakura sighed.

"I hope so." Her stomach growled loudly and she blushed again. Naruto groaned.

"Alright. Alright. I'm on it." Naruto grabbed a kunai and walked off into the woods.

"Don't get lost, you idiot!" Sakura hollered at his back.

-

_Perfect spot_. 

Naruto approached the stream, bent over to roll up his pants, and grimaced. Stupid Sound pants. Once Sasuke had stabilized, Sakura suggested that they ditch their original clothes; it would make them harder to find, especially when it came to Kakashi-sensei's dogs. So, they ripped clothes off some dead guys and stuck their old stuff under a fallen wall. Naruto cursed as he rolled the dark slacks up his legs; he hated them. They had a tendency to ride up.

Naruto stepped gingerly into a stream and glared at the rocks below him, kunai in hand. What really made him sick wasn't the injuries they sustained and it wasn't the pants either; what made him angriest was that their efforts had been in vain. Naruto could still see Orochimaru, as the structure engulfed in flames, laughing that menacing chuckle and disappearing into the ground, Kabuto at his side. It made Naruto's stomach churn.

Something slimy brushed against his leg. Naruto stared down at the fish and smiled evilly.

_You're mine, fishy._

With one swift movement, Naruto flung the kunai at his prey, impaling the creature with killer accuracy.

He chuckled slightly and broke out into a full guffaw. _And they say Sasuke has the best aim. Take that, pretty boy! Now to collect the goods… _

Naruto bent down to retrieve the fruits of his labor, but the fish was gone. With no life to propel it, the creature meandered away downstream.

"GEH! Wait, Dinner-san! Come back!"

-

Soaked and tired, Naruto waddled back to camp. He had underestimated the velocity at which a dead fish could travel downstream. Three times he'd gone on the mad chase and the meals-to-be now dangled lifelessly in his hand. Naruto stepped sleepily through the trees into the campground. 

"Naruto! Look! Sasuke's awake!" Naruto looked up to see Sakura gleaming with joy, still kneeling next to Sasuke, who wasn't just awake, but sitting up.

"Yo." Sasuke sneered, eyeing Naruto's soaking clothes. "What happened to you? Decide to swim with those fishes before you killed them?"

"Shaddap!" Naruto pouted and stuck his nose in the air momentarily before moving closer, where he paused before his friend. In unspoken agreement, the two clasped hands.

"It's good to see you alive." Naruto smiled.

"It's good to be alive." Sasuke grinned back.

"May I sleep now?" Sakura whined.

-

An hour later (after Sakura's nap and Naruto filling Sasuke in on the events up until now), the three sat down to eat. Sasuke looked at his fish, as though sympathetic for its sacrifice. 

"What's wrong, Sasuke?" Sakura asked over the sound of Naruto's chowing down.

"Nothing. It's just something that's been weighing on my mind."

"Well, we've left Konoha, now what…?"

Naruto stopped eating to listen.

"First off," Sakura swallowed some fish, "you need to get better. You may be awake, but your arm and leg haven't completely healed yet."

"But we need to keep moving or we'll be found and forced to return to Konoha." Sasuke pointed out.

"What about Wave Country?" Naruto chipped in. "That's not to far away."

"That's true." Sakura seconded. "And not much fighting either. We can stock up on supplies and Sasuke can rest."

"It'll be good to see Tazuna-jisan too." Naruto grinned.

"No way."

"Huh?"

"Sakura's right." Sasuke interjected, "If he finds out who we are, all our efforts will be in vain. If we tell Tazuna-san, he'll probably tell Inari, and, remember, Inari attends the Konoha Ninja Academy now. We can't let him know it's us. We'll have to use aliases."

"Awwww…" Naruto pouted.

"Sakura," Sasuke rubbed a hand over the stitches on his leg and grimaced at the sickly, unnatural feel, "how long do you think it'll take before I fully heal?"

Sakura bit her fish, thinking.

"Mmm…" She swallowed her mouthful, "Well, if you were an average ninja and I was an average medic-nin, I'd say about a month."

"A month!?" Naruto exclaimed.

"Yes, but that's not the case, is it?" 

"So… How long then?" Sasuke asked again.

"One week tops." She chewed on her fish proudly as the boys gawked at her.

"Alright, it's settled." Naruto announced, "We're going back to Wave Country!"

* * *

Author Rambles: I told you chapter 2 would be longer and less interesting. Anyway, I don't have much to say besides thanks. See you next chapter! 


	3. Primary

Disclaimer: sigh... do I really have to write these everytime? Naruto's not mine, don't sue me...

Chapter 3: Primary

Finding boats to Wave country wasn't rocket science. Since the bridge's birth and Gatou's death, the small island cooperative flourished with prosperity. Tourist boats traveled back and forth every fifteen minutes and these weren't shabby, five person motorboats; these were highly maintained charter vehicles. Three teenagers, all with black hair and brilliant blue eyes, handed their tickets to the collector as he came around. Two of them were dripping wet and smelled of cheap hair dye, but he didn't say anything.

"Arg! My head. It itches!" Naruto dug his fingers into his scalp.

"Stop it." Sakura smacked his hand.

"Oww…" He pouted.

"Stop whinning, at least your not wearing contacts."

The original idea had been to go black hair with brown eyes, to try not to stand out too much, but Naruto had refused to wear contacts.

"I'm not sticking things in my eyes!" He complained.

"You have to." Sasuke commanded. "You can't hold Henge no Jutsu for a week."

"I don't care!"

It went on like this for quite some time, before Sakura and Sasuke buckled down and went cerulean blue.

"Attention all passengers, the boat will be leaving shortly. Please make sure all your luggage has been loaded and all personal items are in your possession. Thank you."

The engine grumbled beneath them like Naruto's stomach at 7 am. Large plumes of smoke billowed into a cloudy sky. Tourists gathered at the railings, waving pleasant goodbyes to families and lovers. Having no one to wave at, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura huddled together on an outdoor bench. Slowly, the boat lurched forward and began to rock on the open tide.

"Waaaaahh." Naruto whined as her rubbed his hands through his course hair. Sasuke grinned at his reflection in the metal seat in front of him and chuckled.

"What the hell are you laughing at?" Naruto glared.

"No, no, not you." Sasuke winced, _although he does look pretty funny with black hair_, "Look."

He turned sharply to his friends, accessing the Sharigan power in his veins.

"Whoa!" The other two gawked.

Although the contacts hid the signature Sharigan red irises, they did nothing to conceal Sasuke's three extra pupils. It was a very strange effect, the blue Sharigan.

"Dude, that is awesome." Naruto squealed.

"Do they still work?" Sakura wondered.

"Oh yeah." Sasuke grinned.

"But you can't use them, Sasuke. People will-" "I know, I know, but then that means no Rasengan for Naruto."

"Eh?" Naruto cried out in alarm. "But the Rasengan is my best attack."

"Sorry, Naruto," Sakura sighed, "but only you and Jiraiya know that technique. If someone saw you use it and word got back to Konoha, we'll have half the ANBU after us."

"I guess summoning is out of the question." Sasuke reclined lazily on the bench.

"Yeah."

They made a mental list; things they could do/things they couldn't, the latter of which was surprisingly long. Most of their techniques were unique and easy to identify. If they planned on making a living as ninja outside of Konoha, they would have to learn new techniques.

Hours passed and the boat bobbed along at an easy pace. Before long, the ship sailed into the traditional dense fog that blanketed this country.

Naruto jumped up excidedly.

"Where are you going?" Sasuke grumbled.

"We'll be able to see the bridge soon. I wanna see it."

Sasuke gave him an "Are-you-stupid?" look.

"That's stupid."

"You're stupid." Sakura stood up and looked at Naruto. "Yeah, I want to see it too."

"Whatever, I'm staying here." Sasuke mumbled and sunk into his seat.

"Oh, Sasuke!" Sakura cried exasperatedly, grabbing his hand. "Stop being such an anchor." She dragged him to the railing after Naruto.

Naruto clambered clumsily onto the rail and craned out over the water, his hand to his brow.

"I can't see it." He whined.

"Of course not." Sasuke muttered from the other side of Sakura. "We're still too far out, and there's too much fog."

Naruto bit his bottom lip and leaned further over the railing. He would have stretched farther, but a strong hand gripped the back of his dark shirt.

"Careful there kid, you wouldn't want to fall overboard." A kind voice said from Naruto's blind spot.

The stranger easily ripped Naruto from the railing and placed him back on the deck.

Naruto looked boldly up into a smiling face. At first he thought he was seeing Kabuto, circular glasses covering oddly trustworthy eyes, but when he looked twice Naruto noticed dark hair and a chin too solid for Orochimaru's dog.

"Th-thank you very much." Sakura stuttered politely.

"No problem." The man grinned. "He's a kid after all." Naruto pouted.

"By the way, Kid, where are you're parents?"

"Stop calling me 'Kid'. I'm a nin-!"

Sasuke slapped a hand over Naruto's month and dragged him away from the man.

"You trying to kill us, dumbass?" He whispered menacingly into his captive's ear. "You're going to get us caught."

"Sorry about that." Sakura apologized to the man, "He's a little short tempered."

"I can see that." The man answered rubbing the back of his head.

"Anyway, sir," Sakura continued, "We're not here with our parents."

"Is that so?" The man looked surprised. "You kids coming here for any particular reason?"

"We wanted to see the bridge." Sakura smiled brightly. "And why are you here, Mr…?"

"My name-"

"Wait." Sasuke let go of Naruto. "It's customary to give one's own name first. I am Aoi, this," He motioned to Sakura, "is my younger sister, Akane and this," He nodded to Naruto, "is my younger brother, Kirimaru."

The man smiled.

"My name is Hiroshi." He held out his hand and shook Sasuke's.

Naruto leaned in to Sakura's shoulder.

"'Aoi', 'Akane', and 'Kirimaru'?" He murmured, "Did he tell you about this?" Sakura shook her head.

"Anyway," Hiroshi said, "I'm a bridge contractor. Here on business."

"Eh?!" Naruto piped up. "More bridges are being built?"

"That's right." Hiroshi beamed. "Another one is being erected as we speak."

"That's so cool!"

"Yes, well, with the success of the first bridge, it only makes sense to build a couple more. The cool one is really the original though. I heard Tazuna-san nearly gave his life for that one."

Hiroshi propped his arms up on the boat's rail and stared out into the endless white. A large shape began to focus before them, slowly unwinding itself from the fog.

"Awesome." Naruto gaped as the bridge loomed overhead.

"Yes," Hiroshi said in a softer voice. "They say this structure single-handedly saved hundreds from starvation. It's an incredible landmark, The O-Naruto-kyo."

Naruto jumped.

"What?!"

"Pretty amazing, huh? That one bridge could-"

"No, what did you call it?!"

"O-Naruto-kyo."

Naruto's jaw dropped. Sakura and Sasuke blinked wildly.

"Are you kidding me?"

"No, Tazuna-san named it just after it was built. I think it was dedicated to some kid who protected it during construction. Strange though, I thought he would've named it after his grandson, Inari."

Naruto looked at the wood paneling of the deck. All this time, and he never knew…

"Hiroshi-jisan!"

"Watch who you're calling 'jisan', brat!"

"Whatever. You're going to see Tazuna-jisan about the bridge, right?"

"Um… yeah."

"Take us with you!"

Sasuke and Sakura shot about a foot in the air.

"Huh?" Hiroshi scratched his head.

"Please." Naruto begged. "I want to talk to him."

"Um… okay."

Sasuke and Sakura quickly grabbed him and yanked him to the side.

"Idiot!" Sakura berated under her breath. "What-?"

"Don't worry." Naruto spoke solemnly. "I won't tell him. I'm going to thank him."

"You-!" Sasuke began.

"What would you do if you were in my place, Sasuke?" Naruto glared directly into Sasuke's fake blue eyes.

"Fine, we'll go see him."

"Woohoo." Naruto jumped for joy.

"But no funny stuff!"

"Hai, hai!"

"Are you kids okay over there?" Hiroshi called.  
  
-  
  
The town had gone through rapid change since the last time Team 7 had been there. The streets, once packed with beggars, were filled with tourists and venders. The stores, once so barren and dusty, were crowded and boisterous. The place was completely void of its former struggles.

Tazuna's house reflected the changes most dramatically. What was a shabby stack of floors two years ago had blossomed into an elegant manor decked in a traditional style. The buildings around it mirrored the same style, emphasizing the importance of the individual who lived there.  
Hiroshi pushed an intercom button by the front door.

"Hello?" A female voice answered.

"Hey, Tsunami-san. It's Hiroshi."

"Ah, Hiroshi-san. My father's been expecting you. Come on in."

The intercom buzzed loudly and they heard the click of the door unlocking. Hiroshi craned forward and pulled the door open. If the team had thought the outside had changed, it was nothing in comparison to what now lay before them. The entrance room where Kakashi had lain, recovering from his fight with Zabuza, radiated with wealth. People ran to and fro, going in and out of doors; it was less of a house and more of a high way.

"What's with all the people?" Naruto wondered aloud as he and his friends took off their shoes and stepped onto the clean tatami flooring.

"Tazuna-san also uses this place as his office. With two new bridges being built, it shouldn't be surprising that there's this much traffic." Hiroshi led the way through the mayhem. "C'mon, our business is on the second floor."

They followed him up the once familiar flight of stairs and through a sliding paper screen door. In this room, several men sat on mats around a low table, their target at the helm.

Even though his town and his home had gone through complete spit shines, Tazuna was the same old Tazuna. He seemed out of place in the rich office, with his dusty, haggard beard and tattered clothes, but, like always, it didn't seem to bother him.

"Oi, Hiroshi!" He called jubilantly as they walked in. "Long time no see! You're just in time."

"That's the way of the hero, showing up just in time."

Tazuna cackled in his seat, wiped his teary eyes and looked back at Hiroshi.

"Eh? What's this?" The old man waved his hand at the three children.

"Oh." Hiroshi snapped back into social protocol. "Tazuna-san, this is Aoi, Akane, and Kirimaru. Kids, this is Tazuna-san, the man who built the O-Naruto-kyo." Tazuna glared at them through his shabby spectacles.

"You." He pointed at Naruto. "What was your name? Kirimaru?" Naruto nodded and shot a quick glare at Sasuke.

Tazuna propped his chin on his arm and looked at Naruto like an art critic in a museum.

"You look familiar… Have we met before?"

"Of course not." Naruto twitched slightly.

The old man stared at him for a few more moments before moving on.

"So, what do you want?"

Naruto took a deep breath.

"Why did you name it 'O-Naruto-kyo'?"

"Actually," Hiroshi began as he sat down with the others, "I was wondering the same thing."

Tazuna looked nostalgic for a moment; his eyes soften and disappeared, as though seeing something very far away.

"Okay, kid." He said to Naruto, "Sit down, I'll tell you."

The three joined the men and they all huddled in to hear better.

"The O-Naruto-kyo," Tazuna began, "is named after an idiot."

"What?!" Naruto jumped up and was quickly forced back down by his comrades.

"Yes, an idiot. One of the biggest idiots I've ever met. He was short and scrawny. Kind of like you." Tazuna laughed at Naruto who flushed, bit his lip and fiddled with his anger management.

"I hired this idiot," Tazuna continued, "and his friends, to protect me from Gatou's men during construction. At the time, my grandson, Inari, had lost all faith in people, but this idiot restored that. He brought hope back into our lives with a will that won't ever crumble. We pray that the bridge will stand for the villagers, what that boy stood for to Inari."

Tazuna looked solemnly at the table.

"Unforunately, that idiot and his friends died recently, so it's more of a memorial now. We named the other bridges after his friends in memoriam too; the newly constructed O-Sasuke-kyo, and our current project, the O-Sakura-kyo."

Naruto stared at the table, seeing and not seeing the bridge layouts strewn across it labeled O-Sakura-kyo. A small ache pulsated somewhere in his chest. He didn't need to look; he knew Sakura and Sasuke were feeling the same guilt.

He quickly jerked his head up.

"Tazuna-jisan!" He called across the table like a general addressing a sergeant.

"Hey Kid! Watch your manners!" Hiroshi scolded. Sasuke and Sakura gave him "What-the-hell?" looks.

"Yes?" Tazuna eyed Naruto through spectacles in that same curious fashion.

"Please, let us help with the bridge!"

Tazuna cocked a quizzical eyebrow.

"What?"

"We'll help you build it, or guard it, or something. There must be something we can do."

"… Why?"

Sasuke spoke up before Naruto could answer.

"Well, we just got here and we were looking for jobs. Right?" He grinned brightly across Naruto to Sakura who nodded and fake smiled back.

"I see." Although Tazuna heard Sasuke, he continued to stare straight at Naruto. Eye to eye, a war was being waged in the space between, a war of wills.

"Sure." Tazuna buckled under the ferocity that was Naruto's willpower. "You can help with the bridge."

Naruto laughed and looked around at his friends, who gave him looks that clearly said "hooray! But we're still going to kill you."

"You three can start tomorrow." Tazuna leaned to his left and pressed a button on the intercom. "Tsunami, would you come in here for a minute?"

A few moments later, the woman pulled back the screen door.

"Yes father?"

Tazuna address the three again.

"You said you just arrived here, yes? That means you probably have nowhere to stay. Tsunami, please set up the guest room for them."

Sasuke and Sakura opened their mouths to protest, but were cut off.

"I will see you three tomorrow."

* * *

Aurthor's Notes: Hmmm... can you smell that? it smells... cheesy!! Sorry, this chapter is so bland. Next chapter will have intense action... I hope... I don't think I can stand writing all this filler anymore... sighs... A few things: "Aoi" means blue, "Aka", from Akane, means red, and "Kiri", from Kirimaru, means yellow. Now you know why the chapter is called "Primary"! Ta-da! Also "O-Naruto-kyo" means The Great Naruto Bridge, for those who didn't know. (and jisan means, roughly, "old man") If you have any other issues with japanese terminology, I suggest you ask someone else before I end up rambling more. I would also like to point out that I post updates and story news on my bio, so check it out!

I would like to conclude by thanking everyone who reads this fic. hugs you all I loves ya! I do!


	4. Complimentary

Disclaimers: Naruto is mine! I own him! ::gets attacked by crazy lawyers:: Ow.... my spleen...

* * *

Chapter 4: Complimentary  
  
"Nice going, genius." Sasuke reprimanded as they prepared for bed.

Naruto grumbled as he lay his mat down on the tatami floor.

"Are you two going to keep rubbing that in my face?"

"Of course." Sakura giggled as she entered the small room, closing the screen door behind them.

Tazuna and Tsunami had been extremely generous; feeding them dinner, lending them clothes to sleep in, the whole job/staying here thing, but there was one major flaw in the whole thing, they had told their host they were family.

Naruto glanced over at Sakura, who was humming happily and fluffing her pillows between him and Sasuke. He had never slept in the same room as a girl, ever. His face felt hot enough to cook ramen on. His stomach felt like it had lodged itself somewhere between his heart and his lungs, which would make sense, considering he was having trouble breathing properly.

_Think about something else_, he thought as he lay down facing the wall. Sasuke hit the light switch. The room went dark blue, with light patches left by the sliding screen door leading to a balcony.

"Good night," Sakura called out jovially.

"G-good night." Naruto stuttered.

Somewhere at the far side of the room, Sasuke grunted.

_Yes, something else, like miso ramen._ Naruto's stomach started to deflate. _Yeah! Miso ramen, that stuff is good. Naruto smiled sleepily. I'm okay now.  
_

He rolled over to get comfortable and found Sakura's nose five inches from his. For a moment, his stomach exploded, spraying acid all over his heart and lungs.

_WAH! Miso ramen! Miso ramen!_

He bit his blanket. There was something about the way the moonlight hit her face that made her even cuter. The pale light softened her features, giving her skin an angelic weightlessness. Her unnaturally black hair coiled itself like a vine all over her pillow. Her eyes rested lightly on dark eyelashes, her lips slightly parted to swallow her rhythmic breathing; Naruto wanted to reach out and touch her.

_Wait. She's asleep already?  
_

Naruto loosened him grip on his blanket. He could've spent hours watching her sleep.

_Crap_, he cursed himself. _I'm never going to get any rest like this. And we have work tomorrow. I bet that idiot Sasuke is fast as-  
_

A shadow cast itself over his sleeping princess. Naruto looked up and saw the figure of Sasuke standing by the door. He opened it with his uninjured arm, limped out on to the balcony, and propped himself on the rail, staring out onto the moonlit water.

Naruto unraveled himself from his covers and followed his friend out onto the veranda.

"Couldn't sleep either, huh?" Sasuke said, still glaring out over the water.

"Nope, what's your excuse?"

"Pain." Sasuke rubbed his leg. "You?"

Naruto blushed and didn't answer, but, apparently Sasuke didn't need one.

"Naruto," he began, "if we're attacked here, and I mean really attacked, will you released him?"

Naruto put a hand on his stomach.

"You're going to have to release him eventually, right?"

"Why are you asking me this?"

Sasuke looked over at Sakura, sleeping peacefully inside. A light breeze blew dark hair into his face and he looked out over the water again.

"She's going to find out eventually, are you going tell her first?"

Naruto grimaced and clutched the cloth over his stomach.

Sasuke could understand the apprehensions. He had never forgotten the day he had learned of Kyuubi. Their first real fight, at Shodaime's waterfall, just before Sasuke had left to join Orochimaru, Naruto had unleashed part the beast within him. Sasuke had never felt such a level of fear, not even as he witnessed Itachi covered in his parent's blood, their lifeless corpses at his brother's feet. When Sasuke returned from Orochimaru's hell hole, Naruto had begged him not to tell Sakura, fearing her reaction, fearing she would react the same way the other villagers had for the past 14 years.

"Don't lecture me." Naruto muttered squeezing his shirt. "I'll tell her, just not now…"

"I'm worried, that's all."

"Huh?"

Sasuke glared out into the bay as if staring down an invisible enemy.

"I have a bad feeling. Something's going to happen."

Naruto let go of his shirt and looked at the sleeping Sakura. He would have to tell her sometime… Sasuke followed his gaze to the still figure asleep on the mat.

"She's… really cute when she's asleep, isn't she?"

Naruto jerked his gaze back to Sasuke and noticed his comrade was blushing profusely.

"Idiot! What's all this about 'pain'?! You can't sleep for the same reason I can't!"

Sasuke turned redder at the undeniable truth.  
  
-  
  
"What's wrong with you two?"

Sakura rolled up her mat the next morning in high spirits. She slept so well, though she couldn't say the same for the other two. They were sluggish, and moody, like women PMSing.

"Just don't ask, okay?!" Naruto snapped as he wrestled with his mattress. It wouldn't roll up for some reason, and after his third try, he gave up and started stamping on it.

"Stupid piece of-"

"Naruto!" Sakura rushed forward to save the poor pad, "That's not yours to step on." She easily mastered the mat within seconds and Naruto growled at her.

Sakura couldn't pinpoint the exact reason she'd slept so well. Maybe it was because this was the first time she'd hit a bed since they left the village or because she had gotten so little sleep due to taking care of their wounds, but Sakura had a hunch that she slept well because of another reason. For the first time since her parents died, she hadn't had to sleep in a house alone. If she had woken up, they would have been there; a luxury she had taken for granted. There was also the fact that it was Sauske and Naruto who were there; people who had already proven they were ready to lay down their lives for her. She felt so safe, so secure, that worry slipped her mind and she had dropped off into sleep.

But now was time for wakefulness, for readiness, and, as she watched Naruto trip over nothing visible, she wondered just how long this day would turn out to be.

"Are you kids up yet?" Tazuna knocked on the sliding door. "Breakfast is ready."

"Coming!" Sakura called as she stashed the mattress in a sliding closet. She grabbed Naruto's hand with her right and Sasuke's with her left. "C'mon, Mr. and Mrs. Moody."

The two boys flushed and muttered curses under their breath, but followed her willingly down the stairs and into the dining room where Tazuna already sat waiting.

"Akane-chan," Tsunami called from the kitchen, "can you help me with this?"

"Of course." Saskura skipped off into the kitchen. Tsunami stood there holding a tray. Like her father, Tsunami hadn't changed much since their last encounter. Sure, she looked a little older, but that didn't stop her from being as active and cheerful as she always was.

"What's wrong with your brothers?" The woman asked as she handed the tray to Sakura.

Sakura looked over her shoulder and saw the boys pulling back chairs to sit down. They moved like the dead; Naruto nearly fell again as he tried to sit down. Chuunin level ninjas, huh?

"I don't think they slept much last night."

"That's too bad."

"Yeah, we'd better join them quickly. They have a tendency to get into fights when they're angry."

Sure enough, as the two entered the room, Sasuke and Naruto were already glaring each other down.

Sakura set the trays in front of them and she and Tsunami sat down as well.

"Let's eat!" They chanted together.

Sasuke's head pounded like extended base just behind his skull. He evenly snapped his wooden chopsticks and held them to his plate. White hot pain shot up his arm. Sasuke quickly clasped his arms under the table and bit his lip to keep from yelling.

"Is something wrong, Aoi-kun?" Tsunami asked; he was the only one who hadn't touched his plate.

"Tsunami-san," Sasuke whispered with difficulty, "I'm sorry, but I'm not feeling well. Do you mind if I step outside?"

"Not at all." Tsunami looked concerned but didn't pry. The other side of the table echoed of Tazuna and Naruto fighting over rice. Sasuke stood up and hobbled away clutching his arm, chopsticks in hand.

"Akane-chan," Tsunami inquired softly, "I noticed Aoi-kun has a limp, did something happen?"

"Yeah." Sakura answered but didn't articulate. She glared at Sasuke's back as he left the room, thinking hard.

"Tsunami-san, when we're done here may I use your kitchen?"  
  
-  
  
A small pebble slipped and fell back on the earthen ground.

_This is harder than I thought…_ Sasuke heaved.

His right arm rendered useless; it shook feverishly and searing pain tore through him every time he tried to use it. So Sasuke had done the only thing he could.

He stared intently at the pebble and held the chopsticks in his left hand, inching forward and struck like a vulture to a carcass. The rock quavered uneasily between the wooden sticks before tumbling back to the ground.

Sasuke collapsed into a heap, his stomach whining and his arm throbbing worse than it had in days.

_At least my headache is gone.  
_

He looked up at the tall trees. He remembered these trees; the hundreds of slash marks had faded away, but he could still recognize them. Sasuke closed his eyes. In his mind, he could see Kakashi-sensei scaling the tree to his left with those crutches.

"I thought you'd be here." A pure voice echoed into his thoughts.

"Sakura."

With some effort, Sasuke rolled up and noticed her walking towards him carrying a white box.

"I came to check up on you." She descended gracefully next to him, sitting on her knees.

"How're you feeling?"

"I'm okay."

"You didn't look okay when you left the table." Sakura opened the box and pulled out an onigiri (a riceball). "You don't need chopsticks to eat this, right?"

Sasuke smiled gratefully.

"Thanks…"

"Now let me see that arm." She gently rolled up his sleeve and began to remove the bandage on his upper arm.

"Where's Naruto?" Sasuke mumbled through a mouthful of rice.

"He went with Tazuna-san to pick up Inari-chan." Sakura stopped her unraveling and revealed the bruised, blood encrusted mass laced with sickly, black twine that was Sasuke's upper arm.

Sasuke made a face.

"Beautiful…" he muttered feeling slightly nauseous.

Sakura laughed and smiled evilly.

"It'll be even more beautiful once I take the stitches out. It'll _feel _beautiful too."

Sasuke felt sicker.

"So, Inari's going to be here too?" He said eager to change the subject. Sakura pulled disinfectant out of her box and began swabbing the dark, flaky blood from his wound.

"Yep."

"That idiot, Naruto. He really got us stuck in it this time. Ouch!"

"Sorry."

"How long is Inari planning on staying here?"

"About a week."

"A week? That's it?"

Sakura stopped swabbing and gave Sasuke a dangerously coy grin.

"Apparently, Konoha's giving us a funeral in a week."

Sasuke swallowed the last bit of his onigiri and grinned.

"I guess that means Mission Accomplished."

"Yep, Mission Accomplished."  
  
-  
  
Naruto waited impatiently at the dock, tapping his foot and pouting.

"C'mon, c'mon!" He muttered as loads of people disembarked from the docked ship.

"It was nice of you to come with me, Kirimaru-kun." Tazuna smiled, "but you could stop whining so much!!"

Naruto grumbled. He hadn't come to help Tazuna.

_Oh man, that brat Inari,_ Naruto chuckled to himself, _I bet he's all crying and mopey because he thinks I'm dead. Crybaby.  
_

"Grandpa!!" A small beast flung itself out of the crowd at Tazuna.

"Inari!" The old man laughed and lifted the young boy high in the air. The two laugh jovially and hugged before Inari noticed Naruto. "Grandpa, who's this?" 

"Oh, this is Kirimaru. He's staying at our house and helping on the O-Sakura-kyo. Kirimaru-kun, this is Inari, my grandson. Eh? Kirimaru?"

Naruto wasn't hearing any of this. His jaw slacked open, his nose scrunched disbelievingly.

_This is the crybaby? He knows I'm dead, right? Why is he so happy? What the hell is going on!?  
_  
-  
  
"We're home!"

Tazuna stepped in to the house. The masses of people had returned and were buzzing around everywhere. Inari looked a little shocked; Naruto was still in shock. Sakura and Sasuke came in from the back to greet them.

"Inari," Tazuna continued his introductions, "this is Aoi and this is Akane, they are Kirimaru's older brother and sister."

"It's nice to meet you." They smiled pleasantly.

Inari nodded, then looked somewhere over their shoulders.

"Mommy!" He yelled as he ran to Tsunami, distant in the background of the house's chaos. Their merriment could barely be heard above the traffic.

"You three." Tazuna pointed to Sasuke, Sakura and the still brain-dead Naruto. "Let's go."

Together they headed out the door, toward the O-Sakura-kyo.  
  
-  
  
The O-Sakura-kyo wasn't all that different from the O-Naruto-kyo, except that it was much smaller. The group took less than a minute to cross over to the incomplete section. The bridge itself was only about ten short from completion.

"Tazuna-san!"

"Hey, Tazuna!"

The workers called out to the old man as he walked by.

"Shiro!" Tazuna ordered. A man stood up from his work.

"Shiro, these are new workers, Aoi, Akane, and Kirimaru. Show them the ropes and assign them duties, will ya?"

"Eh? You're not staying Tazuna-san?"

"Nah, the office will explode if I don't get back soon." Tazuna waved as he walked away. "Take care!"

"Yeah, you too!"

Shiro turned to his new students.

"Ok kids; let me show you a few things."

He gave them a tour, showing them where stuff went and who did what. He showed them the supplies, and then taught them how to use them.

"Eh? Aoi-kun, you're left handed?" Shiro exclaimed as he watched Sasuke work a wrench.

"Uh…." Sasuke pondered the idea, "sure, why not?"

Shiro gave them each jobs; Sasuke and Naruto both worked on basic construction, welding, bolting things down (much to Sasuke's dismay as he had to awkwardly use his left hand for these tasks) and Sakura got…

"Water girl? Why the hell am I the 'water girl'?!" She cried, outraged.

A man large enough to be Choji's uncle laughed as he hefted several iron beams.

"A little girl like you shouldn't be playing with dangerous toys."

Several other workers laughed along with him, including Sasuke, but for a different reason.

"That man," he mumbled to Naruto as his left hand wrestled with a bolt, "just made a huge mistake." Naruto nodded and smiled viciously.

Sakura's eyes shadowed. Her nails dug into her palms as she clenched her fists.

"'Little girl'?" She hissed over the laughter.

With one swift gesture, she snatched the large man's collar, swung him over the bridge's railing and held him tightly above the swift current with one hand. Several other workers cried out in astonishment.

"Who's the little girl now, big man?" Sakura spat at the helpless giant.

"Aoi, Kirimaru, shouldn't you stop her?" One of the men asked in a hushed, breathless tone.

"Nah," Sasuke replied nonchalantly, "she won't hurt him."

"But are you sure it's okay to let her do this?" Naruto whispered.

"You want to try and stop her?" Naruto dropped the subject like a greased watermelon.

Sakura dragged the big man back on to the bridge and pulled his face close to hers.

"Don't underestimate what I can do." She warned and dropped his collar heavily. From that moment on, Sakura was promoted to heavy lifting, where she missed the water-bearing job immensely.  
  
-  
  
The week progressed in a rather typical manner. The three of them worked all day shifts on the bridge and soon grew close to the other construction workers. Sasuke's left hand adapted at an exponential rate; by the third day of their visit, he could write with his left just as well as his right. The days flew by as time does when your having fun, but one thing had not progressed in a positive manner.

"Stupid Inari," Naruto muttered under his breath. Sakura and Sasuke shrugged it off; he'd been acting that way about the kid since the ten year old landed on the island.

Sakura huddled against the cold ocean breeze. Their fifth day had dawned unusually cold and the mystic, shoreline fog had begun it's descent on the lively little town. The nearly complete O-Sakura-kyo was covered in an eerie swirl of white vapor. Inari had spent the day playing water boy for the workers and, now that most of the workers had headed home for the evening, he, Hiroshi, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were left to clean up the mess.

Sasuke's bad feeling nagged at him, the hairs stood up on the back of his neck and a sliver of chill ran down his spine.

"We'll take care of the mess." Sakura told Hiroshi politely. "You hurry and get Inari home."

"Are you kids sure about this?"

"Yeah, not problem." Sasuke said reassuringly, though uneasy. He looked from side to side, but all he saw was the bridge, his friends and the endless white oblivion.

Hiroshi scratched his head, but gave in.

"C'mon Inari, let's not make your mother worry." The two walked off into the fog.

Immediately, Sasuke and Sakura reeled on Naruto.

"What?" He said innocently as he stared into their "don't-give-us-shit" faces.

"You know 'what'?" Sasuke muttered.

"Huh?"

"What's your beef with Inari?" Sakura poked his forehead.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't give us that." Sakura pulled on his cheek. "You know exactly what we're talking about."

Naruto rubbed his sore face.

"It's just that…. Well…" Naruto flushed. "Why is he so happy?! We just died! Doesn't he care?! Doesn't he feel sad at all?!"

Naruto heaved with this outburst. Sakura and Sasuke stared at him, wide-eyed.

"That's what you're angry about?" Sakura asked bemused, "You don't think he cares?"

Naruto looked away.

"Naruto," Sasuke began, "People experience grief in different ways. Just because he's not acting a particular way, doesn't mean he doesn't care."

"Yeah," Sakura added, "he's probably just going through some sort of denial stage." She smiled warmly. "Cheer up, Naruto. I'm sure he misses us more than you can imagine."

Naruto opened his mouth to agree and apologize when he was cut off by the blood chilling scream of a child.

* * *

Author's Notes: dun dun dun... Yay! Suspense! Does that mean a battle next chapter?! hohoho... 

Ok, let me apologize for any spelling/grammer mistakes and the utter lack of sensory detail. I wrote and edited most of this at 2:30am!

I've also noticed that no one has bugged me about pairings yet... wierd... Although this fic is primarily action/adventure, who can do without a little romance, eh?

I'd also to make it clear that the three have their forehead protectors, but they don't wear them...I should have put that in earlier. Gah! This is my first fic! Get off my back! :P

Once again, I'd like to thank you all for your continuing support. Remember, reviews are my fuel! Write something! Thank you, I love you all!


	5. Stamina

Disclaimers: You know the story...

Chapter 5: Stamina

"Inari!" The three ran across the bridge, through the depths of the fog. Figures began to come into focus and color.

The crumpled form of a man appeared first.

"Hiroshi-san!" Sakura called out as they ran to his side. He moaned; blood bubbling from a wound on his leg. A pen fell out of his shirt pocket into the rapidly growing pool around him.

Sasuke glared forward at their attackers.

Three fully armored ninja stood between them and the city; a typical team formation, two boys, one girl, none of them much older than 15. The girl, who appeared to be the ring leader, held a bloody sword in one hand and Inari by the collar in the other. The little boy wriggled and squirmed, but to no avail.

"Chiyute no justsu!" Sakura cried, forming the seals and pressing her hands to Hiroshi's leg. The muscle and soft tissue began to mold itself back together.

"How did you-?" he began.

"No time." She hissed and grabbed him by the collar. She picked him up easily and, before he could say a word of protest, flung him hard, passed the attacks, about 50 feet down the bridge. He tumbled and rolled against the cobblestone paving before getting up awkwardly.

"Hey, what the hell-?!"

"Hiroshi-san!" Sakura called to him. "Go call Tazuna-san and the others! We'll hold them off!"

Hiroshi blinked.

"Go!"

At once, he leapt to his feet and sped of toward the town.

"I'll be back soon!" He called as he fled.

The two boys made to go after him but the girl shut them down with a glare.

"Don't worry, the kid'll be dead long before he gets back." She snickered.

"Stupids." Naruto smiled evilly. "You still have to go through us first."

The girl looked them up and down and gave them a look that clearly said "Are you serious?" She raised the bloody katana, ready to slice Inari in half.

"Ah!" Naruto stepped forward.

_Think fast, think fast._ Sasuke's mind raced.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked passively, though his mind still flew a hundred miles an hour.

The girl lowered the katana, and glared at Sasuke.

"'Why?' I'll tell you 'why'! My father was a great ninja..."

_Just as I thought_, Sasuke grinned on the inside while his face remained serious; _the bad guy is a sucker for the life story speech. Now, what can I use? None of us have any weapons, and anything we could use is somewhere on the other side of the bridge. Inari has a shuriken holster, but he isn't in a position to toss it over. Any sign of attack and she'll kill him. We're on a bridge over water, but I don't know any water jutsu anyway. I need a weapon…bingo.  
_

Meanwhile, Naruto and Sakura listened to the girl babble.

"Two years ago, my father was assigned to protect the great Gatou. He left me and my mother that morning; I had no idea that would be the last time I would see him. He was murdered! He was slaughtered by a man working for Tazuna! The man destroyed my father just before he beheaded Gatou-sama. Now Tazuna shall feel the pain I've felt for the past two years!" Sakura and Naruto exchanged glances.

_She's not talking about Zabuza, is she?_ Naruto thought, _He wasn't working with us; hell, he almost killed us. And her father couldn't have been killed by Zabuza unless he was trampled when Zabuza rushed Gatou. What a retard.  
_

The girl lifted the katana again, but Sasuke was ready for her. His shoe splashed with blood as he kicked Hiroshi's forgotten pen out of the puddle and into the air. He caught the instrument with his left hand, clicked it open and flung it hard at the arm holding Inari. The girl let go just before the pen impaled her arm, instead leaving a dark, blue mark across her wrist. Inari fell heavily onto the cobblestone bridge. Before he could get up, the other two attackers pounced.

"Kage Bunshin no Justsu!" Ten copies of the black-haired Naruto mauled the attackers, leaving space for the real thing to sneak in, grab the kid, and sneak out.

"Are you okay, Inari-chan?" Sakura brushed off his shoulders.

"Inari," Sasuke ordered, "give me your shuriken holster."

"W-wait," Inari stammered, "You guys are ninja?!"

"Hurry," Sasuke cried as the Bunshin disappeared.

The little boy shakily unlatched the holster from his right leg and tossed it to Sasuke.

_Three kunai, nine shuriken,_ Sasuke grumbled, _how limited._

"Attack pattern alpha!" The girl cried, brandishing her katana. The two boys appeared at her side, and the three dashed at Sakura in a V-pattern.

_"Go after the weakest team member", huh? So that's their plan._ Sasuke contemplated as he tossed two kunai and three shuriken to Naruto, _if they think Sakura's the weakest, they're in for a rude awakening.  
_

As their leader closed in on Sakura, the two male attackers dispersed in opposite directions, one to left, one to the right, in an attempt to smite the little boy behind her. But Sasuke had already read their moves. He shot at them, ducked the first boy, hurdled the crouching Inari, and met the second attacker kunai to kunai. Naruto followed behind his teammate within milliseconds and struck at the first attacker's back. Steel met steel as the enemy blocked with shuriken.

The frontrunner raised the bloody katana and slashed it down vertically at Sakura. The blade vibrated as it stopped, wedged between Sakura's middle and index fingers.

"How primitive." Sakura taunted.

With a flick of her wrist, the blade snapped. She positioned her broken half as an extension of her hand and made a forward jab between her enemy's eyes. The girl bobbed her head to the right quickly and received an elegant slash across her cheek. She positioned her half-katana to strike Sakura's ribs, but an iron fist flew at her face first. She attempted to block with her broken sword, but Sakura's strength could not be matched by the steel. Both she and the implement were sent tumbling across the cobblestone bridge, far less gracefully then Hiroshi.

"Uh…" The girl groaned as she scraped herself off the pavement, blood running freely from her nose. She swiped the back of her hand across her face, smearing red over her cheek.

"You guys aren't bad." She said wobbling back to her feet and spitting blood from her mouth as it trickled in from her nostrils.

"As for you," Sakura sneered. "I've seen better."

The guy Naruto held from behind produced a kunai in his free hand, and made to slash at Inari. Sasuke reeled behind him, pulled a shuriken from the holster with his right hand and clashed with the first boy.

"Bad move." The attacker whispered. Sasuke grimaced as he realized his flaw. He was sprawled evenly, protecting Inari, with both hands full. His chest was wide open. Sasuke's initial attacker flourished a kunai in his free hand and aimed a stab at Sasuke's heart. Thinking quickly, Sasuke relieved the pressure on the enemy's blocked hand and launch the kunai straight into the boy's elbow. The boy cried out as blood flew squirted from his arm. He doubled back in pain, taking Sasuke's only kunai with him.

Sasuke turned away from the bleeding man and looked beyond the shoulder of the other. Naruto nodded and the two exchanged a silent plan.

With his free hand, Naruto grabbed the attacker's wrist firmly and ducked down. Sasuke lurched around, hitting the enemy square in the mouth. The boy flew over Naruto, who yanked his arm. A loud snap echoed through the fog. The victim collapsed to the ground unconscious.

"So cool..." Inari whispered.

"This isn't over yet!" The girl muttered. Her hands moved in rapid succession, forming seals.  
"Feel the wrath of my ultimate technique! Tajyuu Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu!"

For a few moments, silence submerged the battle ground. Then from far below, the river began to toss violently. Slowly, like zombies, the hundreds of water clones dragged themselves onto the bridge.

_Crap,_ Sasuke's head swerved in all directions, _we're completely surrounded_.

"No sweat," Naruto chuckled as he put his hands together. "Tajyuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

A war began; water versus shadow. Hundreds of dark clones battled their way chaotically across the savanna of cobblestones.

_Clones everywhere, but where's the original?_ Sasuke dodged a clone's punch, and began to search around, leaving Inari under the watchful eye of Sakura. _And that guy I stabbed. He's gone. He must have used Henge no Justu.  
_

Sasuke glared into the sea of violence. _I will see through this technique!_ His veins pulsed with the power of his bloodline. Everything began to slow down. He could see it.

"Sa- Akane!" He called. "On your right!

Sakura turned without thinking, pulled her arm back and unleashed her strength on the nearest doppelganger. A sickening crunch resounded through the think air as Sakura's fist met with the female attacker's jaw. The girl ricocheted like a rag doll off the pavement and collided with the bridge wall, cracking the plaster. The Mizu Bunshin sank into their original water forms, all except for one.

"YAAH!" Naruto hollered as his fist connected with the last attacker's face. He fell heavily into a puddle, splashing water over Naruto's shoes and sending more moisture into the foggy air.  
  
-  
  
"Hurry everyone! We're almost there."

Tazuna and his crew flew through the streets toward the O-Sakura-Kyo. The bridge loomed up ahead. Tazuna plowed through the fog, praying the worst had not happened. Tight anxiety squeezed his lungs. Beads of sweat lined his forehead.

_Inari, please be alive.  
_

The construction zone sign was rudely trampled as the group charged ahead. Tazuna sped up as his sandals clacked on the cobblestones.

"Inari!" He called out into the fog. Several blurry shapes rose into focus. The group stopped dead in their tracks as they took in the sight before them.

Patches of blood and water dotted the road and, in the center of this polka-dotted linen, four figures stood, the three black-haired siblings and Inari, safe and sound.

"Grandpa!" Inari cried and rushed toward him.

Tazuna smiled spitefully.

This scene looked so familiar for so many reasons.  
  
-  
  
"That looks like all of it." Tazuna wiped his hands as he finished loading his family's stuff onto the boat.

"Ne, old man," Naruto dangled his arms over the dock railing as he, Sasuke, Sakura and Hiroshi watched Tazuna board. "While you're in Konoha, get yourself a bodyguard. We didn't exactly kill those guys."

"Yeah, yeah." The old man waved it off.

"Thank you once again for all your help." Tsunami smiled sweetly, "we are deeply indebted to you."

"It was our pleasure." Sakura replied. "You guys have fun… or something. Well, as much fun as a person can have at a funeral. Mourn well."

Tsunami laughed sheepishly.

"By the way," Tazuna stepped forward and handed Naruto an envelope. "this is for you three."

"Eh?" Naruto held it up to the sun, as though looking for a watermark. "What this?"

"A paycheck." Tazuna crossed the boarding platform and joined Tsunami and Inari on the ship. "You kids did good work. You deserve it." The boat's horn roared loudly and the vessel began its departure.

"Thank you, Tazuna-san!" Sakura cried.

"Don't break a hip, old fart!" Naruto howled.

Sasuke merely waved as the liner disappeared. He looked tenderly down at his left hand and smiled.

* * *

Author's Notes: Yay for chapter 5! and yay for Naruto Unlimited passing the 10,000 word marker! Man, considering this is the shortest chapter, I spent the longest on it... Action scenes are hard. And what do you know, Sasuke has a new ability: he's amidexterous! (Can use both left and right hands equally.) Yay for him! 

I want to thank everyone who reads this, particularly, those who review. (Special thanks to Magicians of the Yami!! My person of the day!)

What's to come next chapter you ask? Suspense! Angst! Flying pink hippos! (okay, not really.) Chapter 6! A funeral for the undead? Kakashi's desicion and Team 7's new mission! (hey, that rhymes!)


	6. Decay

Disclaimers: If Naruto was mine, do you think I'd be writing crappy fanfiction?

**Chapter 6: Decay**

Kakashi glared blindly into the frigid wind. The trees and grass around him bowed to the pressure, but he, and the three wooden pillars before him, remained obelisks in the breeze. The sky rolled like an empty stomach. Black, smokey patches littered the overcast as an ominous warning. Kakashi leaned against the white stone memorial behind him, staring blankly at the wooden posts.

_He appeared out of nowhere in a billowing puff of smoke._

"_YOU GUYS...!"_

_Naruto yelped._

_Sakura screamed._

"... _Pass."_

_Kakashi chuckled._

"_Huh?" Sakura stared unblinking in confusion._

"_Uh..." Naruto babbled._

_Sasuke's glaring eyes glazed with uncertainty._

"_Pass?" Sakura exclaimed. "But why?"_

"_You guys are the first." Kakashi continued._

"_Huh?" Even with her advanced mind, Sakura didn't get it._

"_?" Neither did Naruto, but Kakashi expected that._

"_Everyone else would just do whatever I told them. They were all just morons." He explained to his bewildered audience. "A ninja must see underneath the underneath. Those who break the rules and codes of the ninja world are called trash."_

_Kakashi looked off into the falling leaves._

"_But you know what?" He said. "Those who don't take care of their comrades are lower than trash."_

A stray leaf blew directly at Kakashi's face. He caught it gracefully right before it plastered against his forehead protector and held it up to the brewing storm.

"..."

He released the captive and it drifted nonchalantly away into the billowing trees.

_Is the weather always like this for funerals?_

In the distance, he could almost hear the Hokage's speech, lemon juice to an open wound.

There was a nagging feeling inside Kakashi, a strange pulling sensation.

He could understand Sasuke, but why would Orochimaru want Naruto and Sakura's bodies? It didn't make sense. Nothing made sense.

He shook his head and put a hand on his temple.

"Not going?"

Kakashi looked directly to his left at Jiraiya. The tall man rested easily against a tree.

"You either?"

Jiraiya sighed and looked at the ground.

"Nah, it seems too unreal. I went down there earlier, but it seemed so pointless. So I left." Jiraiya looked into the sickly sky. "I heard you never found their bodies."

"Yeah." Kakashi stiffened and began to walk be toward the village. "Jiraiya, tell Hokage-sama that I'm leaving."

"Huh?" Jiraiya blinked at the man's back.

"I'm going to go find them and bring them back."

"Be reasonable, Kakashi. They've probably decayed by now, and even with the slight possibility that they are alive, the world is so vast. You're going on nothing."

"I'll never know unless I try."

"Kakashi, I miss them too but-"

"Jiraiya!" The solid, stern voice pierced the ashen breeze. The muscles behind Kakashi's vest flexed. "I can't do nothing; I can't sit here while they could still be out there somewhere! Those kids, they weren't just my prized students; they were like family to me. I need to know what happened to them."

Kakashi hunched and sagged. He turned his head to look at Jiraiya, his visible eye draped in aguish.

"Jiraiya, without this, I have nothing to live for."

-

Iruka gazed at the three coffins before him, seeing and not seeing them. Naruto's last words echoed in his mind.

"_See you later, Iruka-sensei."_

He wanted to cry. He wanted to scream and rip his hair out and beg Naruto to come back, please, come back, don't leave me all alone, but he just stood in the chill wind staring at the heavy black boxes, adorned with dead flowers as Godaime sang a sorrowful speech.

He felt empty, drained of life itself. His soul receded into a gaping chasm in his chest that yawned and buckled every time he took a breath.

Clinging to his leg, Konohamaru buried his face into his teacher's chuunin standard pants, sobbing hysterically. Iruka wanted to comfort the boy, tell him everything would be okay, but, in all honesty, Iruka had trouble believing it himself. The other students looked equally miserable; following down the line of Udon, Moegi, and Inari, the last of which looked oddly chipper.

Team 7's closer friends and rivals looked on from behind the younger generations. Hinata cried silently into Kiba's jacket; he patted her head but could think of nothing worth saying. Beside them, Shino stood still as a rock. He hadn't told them that these coffins carried no bodies, only their clothes. He doubted it would make Hinata feel better or pick Lee, at Shino's his left, off the pavement where he sat huddled in a heap as Tenten tried desperately to soothe him.

"Where's Shikamaru?" Temari asked Shino from the other side of Gai's students. The Sand Siblings stood like Shino, expressionless pillars against the frigid breeze.

"He, Choji, and Ino-"

A loud smack resounded throughout the dead air. The attentive team members craned above the rows of heads to see what happened. The older chuunin and jounin behind them did the same, muttering with exclamation. Apparently, Inari's smile was too bright for the distraught Konohamaru. The former lay disheveled upon the ground, the latter standing over him in disgust, fist raised.

"Konohamaru!" Moegi, Udon and a few other classmates jumped forward to restrain him. Iruka looked sadly at them, but felt too drained of life and spirit to care. Those two were always fighting anyway.

"You stupid idiot!" Konohamaru bellowed, "Why are you so happy?! Naruto-nichan's dead, don't you get it?! Dead! He's never coming back! Don't you understand that!?"

"'Idiot'?!" Inari retaliated, "You're the one that doesn't understand!"

"What the hell are you talking about?!"

"Iruka, please restrain you're students." Godaime said coldly from her podium.

"It would be a bring shame to Naruto-nichan's spirit if I cried!"

Everyone was listening now.

"What?" Konohamaru blared.

Inari looked at the ground.

"When I met Naurto, I was still crying over my father's death. All I did was cry. But that was stupid. Naruto-nichan was in pain a lot too, but he never cried! He never gave in! He was a strong man and a brave ninja! He told me not to cry and it would be like spitting on his grave if I did!" Inari softened a little.

"Besides, if he could see you right now, like this, he'd probably go..." Inari put on a Naruto-ish face. "'What the hell are you crying for, stupid!? You go ahead and cry forever, you idiot! You little sissy!'"

Konohamaru blink and sniffled before wiping his eyes.

"Oh yeah! Well, I can honor Naruto better than you!"

"No way!"

Iruka smiled spitefully as he watched the two argue. His soul began to seep back into his body.

_Thank you, Inari-chan._

-

Atop the Hokage memorial, two billowing black capes watched the two boys argue in silence.

"What wrong, Itachi?" Kisame muttered through slick, pale lips to his companion. "Sad?"

Itachi continued to stared nonchalantly down at the coffins, his passive Sharigan eyes displayed nothing.

"Let's go and report this to the boss." He said, turning away from the dark abyss. "Our target is dead."

Kisame chuckled.

"Right."

-

Naruto sneezed three times.

"Are you okay, Naruto?" Sakura put a warm hand against his forehead. "Are you getting sick?"

"N-no, I'm fine." He blushed.

"Are you sure? You look red."

"I'm fine!" Naruto flailed about in embarrassment and nearly stepped on someone's foot.

"Someone's probably talking about you behind your back." Sasuke said as they guided themselves through the traffic of the market place.

Naruto threw off the comment and glared at the sky.

"Why the hell do they call this place 'The Hidden Mist Village'?" he complained as he shielded his eyes from the blinding sun.

Days earlier...

_They stood on the dock, waving as Tazuna's boat sank away into the distance._

"_So, you kids want to be ninja?" Hiroshi asked as he smiled over the water._

"_Um... Yeah." Naruto scratched his head and enforced the lie._

"_Then you guys should head over to the Hidden Mist Village. Their Ninja-Fest is going on right now and, supposedly, they have an excellent freelance bureau."_

"_Alright!"_

And what Ninja-Fest it was. The streets were blanketed inch by inch with shops and street vendors. Everything a ninja could ever want was smashed somewhere in these streets.

"Here we go." Sakura squinted up at a street sign. "'Outdoor Goods 'n' Stuff'"

"Why are we here again?" Naruto whined as they walked inside. "Can't we get something more interesting, like ramen?"

"Naruto, nothing but a hundred bowls of Ramen isn't going to do much for us."

"Hey, don't underestimate the ramen!"

"May I help you?" A young, snooty-looking man came up to them.

"Yes, we're looking sleeping bags and backpacks."

"Ahhhh..." the man whispered sleazily. "Then you've come to the right place."

He led them through the store like a ballerina.

"And this is our most durable sleeper. Rolls up to the size of a loaf of bread. Withstands below freezing temperatures."

"It's perfect!" Sakura exclaimed, "but it's a little expensive." She shot the salesman a puppy dog pout.

"Ma'am, this item has been marked down." He never lost his sleazy grin.

Crap, this guy's a seasoned professional.

"Stand aside, Sakura-chan." Naruto cracked his knuckles. "Sasuke, hold your nose."

"Sexy no Justu!"

The heavenly figure of the naked pony-tailed goddess emerged from a cloud of smoke. The salesman's jaw plummeted and he was thrown back in a twister of nose bleeding.

"So, what do you say, Salesman-sama?" Naruto whispered is a husky voice.

"N-ninety percent off!"

A few minutes later, the trio walked out with three backpacks and three sleeping bags.

"Naruto," Sakura muttered. "Normally, I would hit you."

"Hehehe..." Naruto laughed evilly as he shot a glance at Sasuke. The other boy hid his face behind their purchases.

"Don't get blood on those, Nose Bleed." Naruto taunted.

"Sh-shut up!"

"Next is new clothes!" Sakura announced as the stopped in front of a thrift store.

"Awww..." Naruto sighed.

"Hey, we're working on a budget!"

The three entered the grimy store and began searching through the shelves. It was a short trip; they traded in their stolen Sound stuff for (relatively) new things.

"Okay." Sakura lay down some rules in her loose white, long sleeved mesh shirt over a red halter and denim shorts. "I've split the rest of the money into three equal portions. With this, you guys need to buy weapons. Sasuke, go with Naruto and make sure he comes back with something other than a hundred bowls of ramen."

Naruto pouted, folding his arms above a baggy, black-lined, yellow shirt over a long-sleeved, black mesh. The shirt fit well with the black cargo shorts he wore.

"What about you?" Sasuke wondered. His short-sleeved black mesh shirt was hidden under a blue vest complete with Sasuke's signature high, open neck. He completed the look with long, indigo cargos.

"Weapons? I don't need no stinking weapons." Sakura flexed her muscles. "I'm going to get medical supplies. We'll meet at the Freelance Ninja Bureau in an hour. Okay?"

The other two nodded and disappeared.

-

An hour later, the three converged at the meeting spot.

"Well, how'd it go?" Sakura asked.

"Not bad," Sasuke said, "we just got basic stuff."

"But we got you a present!" Naruto grinned

"Eh?" They handed her a dagger attached to holster. The sheath was her signature red and when she opened it, she was nearly blinded by the stainless steel.

"'I don't need weapons' my ass." Sasuke mumbled.

"Yeah, and look." Naruto pointed to his side, where a yellow copy of her dagger dangled from his waist, and then at Sasuke who also had one in blue. "Now we all have one. Isn't that cool!?"

"You guys!" Sakura took no time in glomping them both. The three fell over into a heap on the pavement.

"Sakura-, Can't- breathe-"Sasuke wheezed.

"Oh, sorry." She let them go and they both gasped for air like dying fish.

"So, what did you get?" Sasuke rubbed his throat as he and Naruto peeled themselves off the pavement. Sakura latched the dagger around her wast.

"Oh just the usual stuff; Senbon (acupuncture needles), ointment, Soldier pills, etc." She reached into a bag. "But I also found these!" She pulled out a book and scroll.

"'Practical Ninjutsu' and 'Cooking Outdoors'?" Naruto read quizzically.

"Yup," Sakura boasted. "No more half raw fish!" She laughed maniacally.

"And this one," She held up the scroll, "is really cool. It has things like mending fabric no jutsu."

Sasuke and Naruto stared at her blankly, unamused.

"Why do I even bother?" Sakura stuffed the books into her backpack. "Let's just get us a client."

Together the three stepped into the Freelance Bureau.

* * *

Author's Notes: Yay! Chapter 6! Crazy contrast huh? From a funeral to a festival. And how about Kakashi? (yes, that cheesey part.) Did you honestly think he'd just sit around? Bwahahaha! And don't worry, it's not the end for Itachi and pals either.

To answer some questions, that haven't been already answered: Yes, Orochimaru is still alive... unfortunatly. He's probably moping around somewhere deep in Sound country, missing Sasuke's body (freak). Kabuto's still alive too, but they don't have active role anywhere in the plot yet, so whether or not they make an appearance is really TBA. I have plans for most everyone else though. Bwahahaha!

Next Chapter! A crazy new mission! Rescue the Princess from _who?_


	7. Reminiscence

Disclaimers: blah blah blah.

::burns Japanese dictionary:: (Stupid neolithic crap!) Thank you Inuko Raima!

Chapter 7: Reminiscence

The Bureau swarmed with people, reminiscent of Tazuna's house. Ninjas of all shapes and sizes bustled about; collecting pay from high ranking missions, scouring the bulletin boards for easy jobs, arguing with other ninja.

"Hey." A thought occurred to Naruto. "This is a Ninja town, right? Why do they have a Freelance Bureau?"

"Do you remember when we met Zabuza?" Sakura said. "Kakashi-sensei told us about their barbaric exam. I bet it has to do with that. You know, like, people not wanting to take the exam means less employment. Low employment means poverty. Poverty means a lower standing as a world power."

Naruto scratched his head.

"Wha...?"

"Hopeless." Sakura glared at him. He glared back.

"Whatever." Sasuke muttered, "Let just do this thing and go."

They pushed their way through the violent crowd to the job-postings board, hidden behind its own wall of people.

"Ouch!" Sakura yelped as someone elbowed her rib cage. "Okay, Naruto, you're going to have to find us one."

"Eh? Why?" He wondered as he pushed though a giggling couple.

"Because you're the smallest." Sasuke said with difficulty.

"Hey!" Naruto grumbled.

"Live with it!" Sakura placed a hand on Naruto's back and roughly shoved him through the crowd.

"Waaaaaa- Ow!" Naruto's face smacked against the wooden board.. "Are you trying to kill me, woman!?"

"We'll meet you out front!" Sakura waved as she and Sasuke disappeared into the sea of people.

Muttering curses to himself, Naruto stared up at the plank covered in papers looming above him.

"Let's see... 'Find a Cat', 'Weed a Vegetable Garden', oooo... 'Escort Woman to Hima.'"

Naruto reached up to grab the flyer, but someone beat him to it.

"Gotta be quicker than that, shrimp." A deep voice echoed from somewhere above.

"Hey!" But the flyer and its thief were gone.

"Damn it!" Naruto reached for another flyer, but this too was snatched away. He tried again, but to the same outcome. Naruto smacked heavily against the board as new ninja pushed through.

"AAAAH! Alright! That's it!" Naruto clasped his hands together. "Sexy no Jutsu!"

Over the up roar of the crowd, Sakura and Sasuke still heard the command. They rushed forward as the smoke cleared and found about twenty poor victims lying dizzy in a pool of nosebleed. Those unaffected, mostly women, gawked awkwardly. Naruto changed back in a puff of smoke and snatched the very last mission off the wall.

"Got one!" He announced proudly to Sakura and Sasuke, holding it up.

"That's wonderful." Sakura mumbled, eying the killer-intent looks from the many kunoichi present. "Let's leave. Now."

-

"Hmmm..." Sasuke held the flyer up to the light. "No wonder it was the last one; it pays cheap."

"Then it's a good thing we're not in this for the cash then." Sakura panted, draping herself limply over a branch.

Naruto's little stunt in the Freelance Bureau had not gone over too well with the locals. The trio had been run out of town by an angry mob and sought shelter in a tree.

"Naruto, don't use that technique for a while," Sakura whined, "I guess we won't be invited back, or at least not in these disguises."

"Yeah, when are we going back to our old styles?" Naruto asked as he poked at his dyed, black hair.

"Not yet." Sasuke inspected the flyer. "It's too soon and we're too close to Konoha. We should continue this Aoi/Akane/Kirimaru thing for a little longer before switching to someone else."

"Awww..." Naruto hung limply from his branch.

"'Please inquire on Biscuit Island. See Shinrimaru.'" Sasuke read. Sakura pulled out a world map.

"'Biscuit Island'?" Naruto mumbled. "Sounds tastey."

"Biscuit Island." Sakura repeated, running a finger over the names. "Ah-ha! It's an island just off the northwest coast. Shouldn't take us long to get there."

"Alright!" Naruto jumped up, "Then what are we waiting for?!"

Sakura and Sasuke gave him blank stares.

"How the hell does he have so much energy?" Sakura wondered aloud.

-

A day later, the three arrived on Biscuit Island and at once began their search for Shinrimaru. He wasn't hard to find; all the locals knew him. Apparently, he had been a great lord not a decade ago, but had lost it all in Water Country's instable economy. He now lived in a shack by the water.

The team investigated the ribbon of beach, shoes off and toes wriggling playfully in the sand and water, until they came to this shack.

The term "shack" was an overstatement for this structure. Creaky wooden panels held up a rusted tin roof and, somehow, it became a living situation. The trio felt humanly wrong and abnormally large as they approached the homely shed.

Naruto extended a shaking hand to the plywood door and rapped his knuckles against the moldy slate. The door echoed and they yelped as it fell in. Sasuke grabbed the circular hole (in place of a knob) and yanked it back up before it hit the ground.

"Awww... Don't bother with that old thing." A wilted voice called. "It's always falling. Come on in."

Obeying the disembodied voice, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura stepped into the one-room shed. The inside reflected years of weather. The large, elevated wooden flooring filled the room and was covered with sand and water stains. To the left, lay a simple mattress, to the right, a bureau. A small fire pit roasted a kettle in the center of the hut across from which sat a haggard old man (or at least he looked old).

"Are you Shinrimaru?" Sasuke asked as they dropped their shoes by the discarded door and stepped onto the hardwood flooring.

"Yes," the old man nodded, "How may I help you?"

Sasuke held up the flyer.

"You're looking for ninja?"

Shinrimaru gave them a blank look.

"You three kids are going to help me? I asked for upper level ninja, not academy students"

"You got a problem, geezer!? Mmph!" Sakura clamped a hand tightly over Naruto's mouth.

"I can assure you, sir, that all three of us are at a chuunin level." She smiled brightly while easily subduing the flailing Naruto.

Shinrimaru sighed.

"Very well. Sit down and I'll tell you what I need."

They did as they were told.

"I have a daughter around your age," Shinrimaru began, "and about two weeks ago she was kidnapped. It's your job to get her back. Here's a picture." Sakura took the photo and Naruto leaned over her shoulder to look at it. The face below glowed with a bright smile; she was very pretty, with long, black hair and livid, green eyes. She had a quiet, shy look about her that gave away a gentle disposition.

"Wait a minute," Sasuke said, "Why did you wait this long before hiring someone?"

"Akari-chan, my daughter, doesn't live with me. She goes to Sorano Fuuka."

"Really?" Sakura exclaimed, "That's so cool!"

"Eh?" Naruto scratched his head.

"Sorano Fuuka is a very prestigious post-academy ninja school with a focus on sealing. It's situated way up in Lightning Country. But Shinrimaru-san, you don't exactly look wealthy. How did you pay for tuition?"

Shinrimaru smiled.

"Back when I first lost my title, I decided that I didn't want Akari-chan to live like this, poor, decrepit... Espeacially, because she is so smart and has such a bright future ahead of her. So I sold all my possessions and gathered what money I had to send her to that school."

Sakura smiled sweetly.

"You must really care about her."

"She is everything to me." Shinrimaru grinned nostalgically. "That's why you must get her back."

The three nodded in unison.

"Do you have any idea where she might be?" Sasuke asked, looking at the photograph.

"Yes," Shinrimaru pulled a box toward him and began rummaging through it. "I also know who took her." He pulled out two pieces of paper; a flyer and a photograph. He handed the latter over first. "This is the man. An old rival of mine, Usomaru. I believe he's entered her in this." He handed the flyer to Sasuke, while Naruto and Sakura ogled at the fat, bald man in the photo.

"'Young Teen Queen Pageant for Kunoichi on Sea Breeze Island. Presented by NinCola'?" Sasuke read quizzically. "Why?"

"I'm guessing it's a combination of his hate for me and his love for get-rich-quick schemes. The pageant's winner takes home a lot of money."

"What's this guy's problem with you?" Sakura asked, looking up from the photo.

"Well, he was a lord of this country before I was, but the economy toppled him over, and I quickly took his place. I heard he got a job as second-in-command for a shipping monopoly in Wave Country, but that collapsed two years ago when their CEO was slaughtered. He came out of it a rich man, but a lot is never enough for some people."

"He's rich, huh?" Sasuke repeated.

"That means he'll probably have ninja protecting her." Sakura said.

Shinrimaru hung his head.

"Don't worry, Shinrimaru-jisan." Naruto grinned brightly, extending his arm to the man and lifting his thumb upward. "We'll rescue Hikari-chan!"

"It's Akari-chan."

"Whatever!"

-

"Uwaaahh!" Sakura pushed her new long, platinum locks out of her face. "It's so pretty!"

It had been three days since they left Shinrimaru and Biscuit Island and, if Naruto had thought Water Country was hot, he knew nothing of Sea Breeze Island. The purely tropical land mass lay just off Fire Country's eastern sea border. It was very touristy, a packed metropolis of expansive shopping centers, white beaches, turquoise surf and complete with a Mega Dome ten times the size of Konoha's Chuunin Stadium waving a sparkling banner reading "Young Teen Queen Pageant for Kunoichi!! Sign up now! (Presented by NinCola)."

They had sorted out the plan on the boat. Aoi, Akane and Kirimaru were replaced by Pageant Contestant Haruko and her two bodyguards.

"Geh!" Naruto tugged on his collar.

"Stop it, Naruto." Sakura scolded, "Those suits are rentals."

The heat was bad enough without the black suits Naruto and Sasuke wore. With the addition of the dark sun glasses, Sakura thought they looked less like bodyguards and more like the mob. (_A very handsome mob too_, she giggled to herself.)

Sakura herself had rented a long white wig and a pretty, white lace dress that stopped short at her knees and tended to spin every time she turned. She finished off the style with white flip-flops and her old, blue contacts; she didn't think her own mother would have recognized her.

"Let's go sign you up." Sasuke announced grudgingly as messed irritably with his tie.

"Okay!" Sakura laughed like the sun on water. She happily skipped off to the Mega Dome, the other two trudging along behind her.

-

After waiting in line for what seemed like hours, Sakura received her sign-up papers. She moved back to a table to fill it out, humming a little song all the way.

"Why are you so happy?" Naruto asked. He couldn't remember a time when he was more miserable. He was hot, the suit itched, and he hadn't eaten ramen in three weeks.

"Don't you know? It's every girls dream to be in a pageant."

"Are you serious?" Naruto muttered cynically.

"Yup."

"What about Temari?" Sasuke pointed out.

Naruto tried to imagine Temari in an evening gown prancing around on stage. He found himself rolling on the floor laughing. A few people looked in their direction.

"Okay, maybe not." Sakura scribbled on her questionnaire. "'Talent'... What should I do for a talent?"

"Heavy lifting!" Naruto suggested, picking himself off the floor.

"Bad idea." Sasuke put out Naruto's idea like a match in a hurricane. Naruto threw him a dirty look. "This thing is highly publicized. It would be bad if got around to the Hokage."

"Then I'll sing a song." Sakura made some scratches on the paper. Sasuke and Naruto gave her questionable stares.

"What? We're just here to retrieve Akari-chan. If I was trying to win, I'd do heavy lifting." She made a couple more marks and got up. "I'm going to go turn this in. You guys wait here."

Sakura hummed a tune as she skipped to the entry box and slid the paper into the slot. Something on the ground caught her eye.

"What's this?" She leaned toward it. A lone kunai rested on the maroon carpet. It shone bright against the dark floor, but Sakura noticed it had several scratches.

_It's been used before._

A piece of pink, braided string, garnished with a cylindrical bead, was wrapped three times around the circular loop handle. Sakura paused and checked for traps. No strings lead to the kunai and she couldn't feel the presence of chakra. Slowly, she leaned down to pick it up.

Two hands landed on the kunai, one of which wasn't Sakura's. Slowly, she raised her head to the other's eyes.

Sakura's heart jumped and squeezed itself into her esophagus. She choked and pulled her hand back, like the kunai was on fire.

"Oh, this is mine." The other said.

Sakura's jaw slacked as she gazed upon the girl.

_INO!?_

* * *

Author's Notes: BWAHAHA! Cliffhanger! ::feels evil::

Next Chapter: The Pageant begins! Friends become enemies! What the hell is going on!?


	8. Probability

Forget disclaimers, let;s move right on to the story!

Chapter 8: Probability

The hairs on the back of Sasuke's neck stood up on end.

_Something's not right._

He looked worriedly over his shoulder.

"...and then I'll get pork ramen-"

"Naruto." Sasuke rubbed the vacant scar on his right arm. "Let's go find Sakura."

"Huh?" Naruto rolled his chin on the table to look up as Sasuke rose.

"I'm... getting a bad feeling."

"Diarrhea?"

"No dumb-ass! Let's just go find Sakura."

-

Sakura's mouth draped open. A thousand different things scurried around in her head.

"Um... Are you okay?" Ino looked down at her.

"Y-yeah." Sakura stuttered as she picked herself off the floor and facing Ino straight. Sakura was shocked to see how much her rival had changed. She had traded in her purple outfit for something black. Her hair, which had been chained to the back of her head in the past, hung loosely to her shoulders, held only by her forehead protector, which she wore across her forehead. Sakura also noticed an odd bracelet of braided yarn around Ino's right wrist, one strand yellow, one blue, and one red.

Ino gave Sakura a quizzical look.

"Have we... met somewhere before? You look awfully familiar."

"N-no, I don't think so." Sakura squeaked as her throat dried.

"Oiiii! Ino!" A voice called from down the hall. "Have you found it yet?"

Sakura looked passed Ino's shoulder and nearly barfed. Shikamaru, Choji and another familiar looking girl came up behind the blonde. Unlike Ino, Shikamaru and Choji hadn't changed, except that black seemed to be the theme of the day and they wore the odd wristband too.

"Yeah, yeah!" Ino scolded, "Quit you're whining!"

"Who's your friend, Ino?" Choji garbled through a mouthful of chips.

The sound of fast moving footsteps echoed from behind Sakura.

"Hold on a second!" Naruto's voice resounded down the hall. Sakura saw Shikamaru twitch and draw a sudden interest. He looked curiously behind her as Sasuke, followed closely by Naruto, came darting into the room.

Sasuke slid to an abrupt halt as he recognized the faces before and suppressed the urge to yell in shock. This came harder for Naruto, who blatantly pointed at Team 10, and would have screamed, but Sakura made a quick step backward, crushing his toe with her heel.

"Haruko-san." Sasuke snapped back into character while Naruto leaned against the wall in pain.

"Wh-what are you two doing here?" Sakura mumbled, throwing them desperate looks.

Sasuke pushed up his sunglasses Ebisu-style.

"You were gone so long we began to worry."

_Yeah, whatever, I was gone for 2 minutes_, Sakura sweatdropped.

"Sorry," She rubbed the back of her head.

"Who are these people?" Sasuke nodded to InoShikaCho.

"Oh!" Sakura turned back to Ino, "I don't believe we've been properly introduced. I'm Haruko, and these are my bodyguards..." _Crap_, _we forgot to give them names!_ She pointed at Sasuke "...Pakkun and..." She pointed to Naruto, who was huddled in a mound on the floor. "... Takkun."

Shikamaru's questioning glare darkened.

"I'm Ino." Ino began, "These are my friends, Shikamaru, Choji, and..." Sakura already knew the answer. She cringed. "...Akari-san." There could be no doubt; this girl emulated the photo exactly. "It's nice to meet you, Haruko-san." Ino clasped Sakura's hand.

"The pleasure is mine." Sakura grimaced. "So you're entering this pageant too?"

"Yeah, me and Akari-san."

"I hate to interrupt, Haruko-san," Sasuke put a hand on Sakura's shoulder, "but don't we need to get back."

"Uh... Oh, yes... right... to do... that thing." Saskura muttered. "It was very nice meeting you, Ino pi-... -san. Shikamaru-san, Choji-san, Akari-san. Good luck with your entry!"

"Um... Yeah, it was nice meeting you too." Ino scratched her head.

"C'mon, 'Takkun'." Sasuke grabbed Naruto off floor as the three dashed away.

-

"'Pakkun'? You named me after Kakashi-sensei's dog!?"

"Sasuke, do you really think that's our biggest problem right now?" Sakura collapsed on one of the hotel's bed like a rag doll. "Of all the people in the world, it had to be InoShikaCho. What a crazy day!"

"Speak for yourself!" Naruto snapped from the other bed. "I think you broke my toe!"

Sakura miserably meandered over to Naruto to have a look at his blue and purple foot.

"It could be worse." Sasuke said as he messed with his hair in the mirror. He had a feeling it was going to give him away.

"Yeah," Sakura rummaged through her backpack for her medical supplies. "It could've been Lee, Tenten, and Neji. Have you seen my bandage wrap?"

"Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of Kiba, Shino, and Hinata." Sasuke wrapped the bandage around his forehead. It made his hair stand up more like Naruto's. "Never doubt the ability of Akamaru's nose."

A vein popped in Sakura's temple as she snatched her stolen bandage from Sasuke. He grinned.

"How do I look?" He put on his sunglasses.

Naruto and Sakura gave him blank stares.

"Perfect, like an idiot." Sakura began to wrap Naruto's toe. Sasuke sighed and flopped down on the vacant bed.

"So what are we going to do about all this?" Sakura said as she finished her task and stowed the bandage in her pack.

"We're not going back." Naruto pouted, "I gave that old guy my word."

"I wasn't even thinking that, dummy." Sakura sat down sat to him. "Our main problem is Shikamaru. That guy is smart. I think he's already suspicious of us. We should be fine if we steer clear of him."

"Easier said than done." Sasuke pointed out. "Especially, if they're the one's protecting Akari. I think we'll have to fight them eventually."

Sakura and Naruto sighed exasperatedly.

"We should probably come up with a plan of action then." Sakura suggested.

Sasuke nodded, "But first we need to figure out our schedule and their schedule, so we can pick an opportune moment. Sakura, it's till up in the air because neither you nor Ino have been accepted as contestants right?"

"Yeah, I have my interview tomorrow morning."

"Well, first things first. Let's get you into this pageant."

-

Layer by layer, the sun pulled itself out of the sea and into a dazzling morning sky. Sasuke watched whistfully, as was his morning routine. The sun burned in very mysterious ways to him, but it never changed. When the sun set in the evening, you could count on it to be back in the morning.

Sasuke turned away from the dawn and back to the room, where his comrades were both sleeping peacefully.

"Don't leave me, Ramen-sama..." Naruto mumbled, before rolling over and snoring loudly.

Sasuke eyed his friend quizzically before kneeling between the two twin mattresses to roll up his sleeping bag. (Naruto and Sasuke had played Rock-Paper-Scissors for the bed. Sasuke didn't know why he bothered though. For some reason, he always lost when he played Naruto at Rock-Paper-Scissors.) Sasuke pulled the duffle strings tight and stood up. He gently leaned over Sakura and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Sakura, wake up."

"Mmmnnnn..." She groaned, but didn't budge.

"Sakura, you're going to be late." He shook her.

"Nya... five more minutes. I haven't finished dinner yet..."

Sasuke stood over her, a vein throbbing in his forehead.

"Uwaaaah, I can't eat any more..." Sakura babbled.

"Up!" With one swift move, Sasuke lodged his hands between Sakura and the mattress and threw out of bed.

"Owww!" Sakura appeared over the edge of bed. "What the hell was that for?!"

Sasuke put a hand on his hip.

"You have an interview in forty-five minutes." He scolded. "What am I, your mother?"

-

"'What am I, your mother?'" Sakura mimicked as she trudged alone into the MegaDome. Only participants were allowed in, so bringing her 'bodyguards' was rather pointless. Sasuke said he would wait until Naruto woke up.

"May I help you?" A receptionist said.

"Yes, I'm here with an appointment."

"What's your name?"

"Haruko."

The receptionist scribbled something and handed Sakura a piece of paper.

"Second floor. Give this to the secretary."

"Thank you."

Sakura rode the elevator to the second floor. She stepped out into a new reception hall, crammed full of girls blabbing about 'this boy' or 'that dress'. Sakura chuckled. She'd been with Sasuke and Naruto for so long, she'd forgotten what is was like to giggle about pointless things.

She handed the slip to the secretary and receded through the crowd, looking for a place to sit. Amongst all the laughing and superficial talk, Sakura spotted one person who wasn't partaking.

"Ino-san," Sakura approached her seated friend. "What a coincidence! Are you here for an interview too?"

Ino looked up.

"Ah, Haruko-san. You're here too?"

"Do you mind if I sit down?"

Ino smiled, as if happy to no longer be alone in a room full of people. She scooted down the bench.

"Be my guest."

"Ino-san, where's Akari-san? Didn't you say yesterday that she's entering too? Or is her interview not today?"

"Nah, Akari-san's already been accepted."

"That's cool, Ino-san."

Ino twitched.

"Haruko-san, you don't need to call me 'Ino-san'. 'Ino' or 'Ino-chan' work fine."

"Only if you stop calling me 'Haruko-san.'"

"Agreed." Ino smiled, and reclined her head against the wall. "You're strange, Haruko-chan."

"Eh?"

"Not in a bad way. It's just... Normally, I don't mind people calling me Ino-san, actually, I kind of like it. But from you, it sounds weird."

_It feels weird to say it too._ Sakura muttered to herself.

"Say, Ino-chan. Your kunai had a piece of string on it. Why's that?"

Ino pulled out a kunai and laughed as she fingered the threaded braid.

"Well, there's kind of a story to it. You've met my friends Shikamaru and Choji. Well, we fight a lot of battles together and so our weapons get mixed up a lot. It wouldn't be such a problem, but Shikamaru is so lazy, his kunai are usually dull. Choji's kunai are all greasy because he's always eating those chips. I, however, take excellent care of my stuff. So this is just to make sure they don't get nice sharp kunai, while I get stuck with dull, greasy ones."

"That makes sense, Ino-chan." Sakura eyed the band on Ino's wrist. "I guess that one's for a different reason though. I noticed both Shikamaru-san and Choji-san wear the same thing."

Ino suddenly looked scared. She clasped a hand over that band.

"Th-that's nothing." She stuttered, her face growing red.

"Hey, you're bodyguard, Pakkun, he's pretty cute, ne?" Ino changed the subject quickly, but Sakura didn't pry. She had a feeling about what that bracelet symbolized.

_Cute?_ Sakura thought about her rude awakening that morning. _Whatever_.

Ino stared into space rubbing the braid on her wrist. Her face looked weary, as if tired of life itself. Sakura's mind fluttered, struggling to think of a way to get her friend's mind off the bracelet and back into her tough girl frame of mind..

_Hmmmm..._

"You know Ino-chan," Ino snapped out of her train of thought. "I guess, if we're both in this pageant, doesn't that make us rivals."

Ino blinked a few times before smiling evilly.

"Yeah, I guess it does."

_Now that's the Ino I know._ Sakura grinned.

"I'll have you know that I never lose." Ino sneered.

"Really? I guess your streak stops here."

The blaring intercom resounded through the crowded room.

"Haruko. Room 201."

Sakura stood up and looked down at Ino.

"I'm not going to lose to you."

Ino stood up.

"Same here."

The girls clasped hands in agreement before Sakura walked off to Room 201.

-

"Ramen! Ramen, ramen, ramen!" Naruto sang as he and Sasuke trudged through the marketplace looking for breakfast.

"Who has ramen for breakfast?" Sasuke eyed Naruto as though concerned for he was going to self combust.

"I do!"

Naruto smelled the air.

"There's a place this way." He said pointing down an alley.

_I don't even want to know how he can do that. _Sasuke contemplated.

Sure enough, a ramen stand appeared before them within seconds.

Naruto sped up and laughed like a kid at an amusement park, but Sasuke grabbed the back of his collar.

"Wait a minute."

Sasuke glared into the street side ramen vendor. Three pairs of legs look familiar.

"What the hell? Let go of me, Sas-!"

Sasuke clamped a hand over Naruto's mouth.

"Shut up, you idiot." Sasuke glared at the bar. "You're hell bent on eating here, right?"

"Mfphmmp! Wmnph fmtp fma mmm, fmp fempenwrmep! (Hell yeah! Now let go of me, you freakin' retard!)"

Sasuke pulled him into an adjacent alleyway and let go.

"What the he-!?"

"Naruto, listen carefully. When we go in, don't order miso ramen."

"WHAT!?"

"Shhh!"

Sasuke looked around nervously.

"And when we sit down, don't say anything."

"?"

"Pretend like... like you're too cool to talk."

"In other words, act like you."

"Dumbass, I'm being serious!"

"What's all this about?"

"You'll see."

Sasuke lead the way out of the alley and toward the street stand, a befuddled Naruto in his wake. He pulled back the cloth flap to see exactly what he thought he would; Shikamaru, Choji, and Akari-san sitting at the bar.

"Ah, Shikamaru-san, Choji-san, Akari-san, what a coincidence." Sasuke smiled as he sat down next to Shikamaru. Naruto, with some effort, kept his mouth shut and sat down on Sasuke's other side.

"Ah, Pakkun..." (Sasuke twitched) "...and Takkun." Akari exclaimed. "What a pleasant surprise! I see Haruko-san is not with you. Does she have an interview?"

"Yes actually, I take it Ino-san has one too?"

Akari nodded.

"What'll you boys have?" The proprietor asked.

"A pork for him and a miso for me." Naruto kicked Sasuke.

_Traitor! Ordering miso ramen after telling me not to._

Shikamaru gave Sasuke the most suspiciously passive look he'd ever seen.

"Nice hair cut."

"Thanks..." Sasuke gave Shikamaru an equally suspicious look.

"It was different yesterday."

"Yes, Haruko-san didn't like it so I changed it." You could cut the tension with a knife. Even Choji stopped eating to watch.

"Here's your food, gentleman." A steaming bowl of miso ramen landed in front of Sasuke but his eyes never moved from Shikamaru's.

"You're Haruko-san's bodyguards, right?" The notorious slacker sneered. "Then why aren't you protecting her?"

"Haruko-san is in a building full of ninja. We don't need to protect her all the time, not like you do with Akari-san."

Choji choked. Akari gasped.

"You're good." Shikamaru smiled.

"So are you." Sasuke smiled back.

"You remind me of someone."

"And that person is obviously not here, because I most definitely have never seen you before."

Shikamaru grinned.

"Right."

Choji relaxed and returned to his pile of ramen bowls.

"Crazy," Shikamaru said, half to himself, half to Sasuke. "Who has ramen for breakfast?"

* * *

Aurthor's Notes: Wheeee! long chapter, but not much happens! I went through some of the older chapters and I had no idea how many typos there were! I'm really sorry about that! I'll try harder to catch these things.

Also I'm sorry about the character balance. I'm not of the persuasion that each arc should be dominated by a single character's issues; I like the One Piece where, no matter what the situation, all the characters are doing something (or at least usually) and central character gets left out. However I found that Naruto got the short end of the stick in this chapter. Poor Naruto, I'll give him a bigger part next chapter.

Next Chapter: The Contest Begins!


	9. Reflection

Disclaimers: Forget this! ::kicks::

Chapter 9: Reflection

"Sakura hasn't come back yet." Naruto stared out at the dark blue sea littered with moonlight. "You think something happened? She didn't bring her wig or her contacts. Do you think she might have been spotted by InoShikaCho?" A few days had passed since their last meeting with the dream team, but you could never be too cautious. Besides, those three tended to pop up out of nowhere.

"Don't worry about her. She's probably fine." Sasuke reclined nonchalantly against the bed's headboard, going over Sakura's acceptance letter and schedule. Naruto sighed miserably and collapsed on the opposite bed.

Naruto's groans pierced Sasuke's deep planning like an ice pick. A vein pulsated in his forehead.

"Naruto, open a window. It's hot in here and I'm trying to think."

"Why the hell should I?!" But he did it anyway; the action took his mind off all the horrible things that could be happening to Sakura.

Naruto opened the window and let the cool breeze clear his mind when the soft sound of music reached his ears from above.

"Eh?" The sweet sound of vocals sailed high into the night sky.

"I'll be back in a minute."

Sasuke smiled as Naruto dashed out the door.

Their cheap room lay on the top of the hotel, so it didn't take long for Naruto to reach the stairs leading to the roof. He yanked hard on the door and it slowly moved outward.

A blast of the tropical breeze tussled Naruto like heat from flames as he stepped out onto the roof. A pale figure in a flowing, knee-high, white, summer dress stood like a Corinthian column, a star against the brilliant indigo sky.

Her short hair danced in the wind like her song danced in the air. Her dress flailed like the wings of a dove. The intense moonlight glazed her bare shoulders and softened her features like a flower covered in pollen.

Naruto stepped closer.

"Sakura?"

The girl craned her head over her shoulder and yelped.

"N-naruto! Wh-where you listening?" In the moonlight, Naruto could see her face redden. It had been a while since he'd seen her without her platinum wig. The cheap, black dye had faded; her original pink, now long enough to swipe between her shoulders, bloomed forth like flowers in spring. The hair tickled her lips as she blushed at Naruto.

"Uwahhhhh, Sakura-chan, I never knew you could sing so well." Naruto approached her, his casual yellow shirt billowing along with her light dress.

"You think so?" She rubbed the back of her head. "I've been practicing really hard."

"Sakura-chan, you said that we were only this to get Akari-san. You said you didn't care about winning."

"Yeah, well things change." She turned her back on him and stared out at the sea. "I'm... not going to lose to Ino."

_Ooooh..._ Naruto thought with a sudden understanding.

"Well, if you want to beat Ino, you're going to have to do better than that."

Sakura turned back to him, alarmed.

"But you just said I could sing well."

"Yeah, but you're missing something."

"?"

Naruto step up beside her and looked out over the waterfront city.

"Sakura-chan, you focus too much on how you sound and what you're saying, but none of that really matters. You should sing how you feel. Grasp a strong emotion and run with it. Don't sing with your voice, sing with your heart."

Sakura blinked at him for a moment like he was incomprehensible.

"When did the village idiot learn such incredible things about singing?"

Naruto grinned.

"I don't know a damn about singing; that's just the way I look at everything."

-

Sakura and Naruto reentered the room, laughing.

"Welcome back you two." Sasuke said from his new seat on the windowsill.

"Windowsill..." Naruto thought. "You were listening in on us?!"

Sasuke smiled.

"Sakura, what's it with you and Ino? Do you pick fights with her on purpose?"

Sakura sat on the bed closest to her.

"Well, I told you how I met her before my interview, right? When I talked to her, she seemed so lonely. When we were at each other's throats, we were closer, in essence; I thought I could cheer her up." Sakura sighed. "Besides, Ino's happiest when she's yelling at someone."

"How thoughtful of you." Sasuke sneered sarcastically.

Sakura threw him a dirty look.

"You know, there are five stories between the ground and that window. You want me to show you the quickest way down?"

Sasuke scratched his head.

"Actually, Sakura, there was something else I wanted to ask you about."

"?"

"This 'After-Party'," Sasuke pointed to the bottom of the schedule, "it says it's only for contestants and special guests. Does that mean we're not invited?"

"Yeah, there were some sabotage issues a couple years back, so no outsiders." Sakura rubbed her shoulder. "It's too bad though."

"Are you kidding? It's perfect."

"Eh?"

Sasuke hopped off the sill.

"If Naruto and I can't go, I'm guessing the neither will Choji and Shikamaru. This will be our moment of action."

"Hold on a second," Sakura held up her palm. "You want me to kidnap Akari alone!? From a room filled with kunoichi?! With Ino watching her every move?!"

"You underestimate yourself, Sakura. It's a party. How well do you think Ino will be watching?"

Sakura pouted.

"Don't worry," Sasuke chuckled, "I have a plan to get me and Naruto in. We won't let you do it alone."

"Eh?"

"I also have an idea about how to successfully capture Akari."

Sakura stood up and pulled on Sasuke's cheek.

"Well, aren't we a bushel of ideas today?" She sneered and let go. "So what's this plan?"

"Sakura, do you still remember how to make that sleeping powder?"

"Of course."

"All we need is that and a stick of gum."

-

A week later, all the pieces began to set in place.

"Ok people, listen up!" the dance instructor bellowed across the makeshift stage in the MegaDome. "This is our last rehearsal before tonight, so I want to see everyone's best!"

The fifty selected girls stood like statues, all except one.

"Haruko! Please pay attention!" The instructor reprimanded.

"H-hai!" Sakura jumped into line after a quick glance over her shoulder.

_Good luck, Naruto._

-

Naruto sighed miserably, stuck a piece of gum in his mouth and pushed long yellow pigtails out of his face.

_I have forty-five minutes..._

He took a deep breath and burst through the MegaDome's main doors.

"Aiya!" he squealed. "I'm so late!"

"Eh?" The receptionist looked up.

"WAHHH! Rehearsal has already started without me." Naruto jumped around frantically. "Quickly! Buzz me in!"

The receptionist pushed a button on her desk. A double door to the left buzzed and opened outward.

"Thank you!" Naruto dashed through the doors.

"W-wait!" The receptionist called, "You forgot to sign in!"

"No time!" Naruto called over his shoulder as his disappeared down the expansive halls.

He grinned.

_Infiltration complete._

Naruto ran quickly through the hall, before ducking into a janitor's closet. He fumbled around for the light, knocking several miscellaneous objects around before finding it. In the cramped, dim light, Naruto rolled up the sleeve of Sakura's white mesh shirt and looked at the roughly scribbled map on his wrist.

_So far, so good..._

Detangling himself from a mop, Naruto peeked around the door and looked down the hall. No one. He gingerly stepped out of the closest, pulling on his shorts.

_How the hell can Sakura wear these? They're so freakin' tight! Damn that Sasuke! He gets to sit and watch Sakura's rehearsal while I'm doing the dirty work. This was his stupid plan!_

Still cursing Sasuke, Naruto shook a pail from his foot and shut the closet door behind him. He raced down the hall, looking at his wrist and slid to a halt before a door engraved with a large star and the words "Dressing Room."

Delicately, he pulled the door open and crept inside.

The dimly lit room expanded outward, stuffed full of lighted mirrors and dresses. Naruto heard music to his right, the rehearsal and crept away from it. His target came into view. Naruto gnawed on his gum and slowly approached the back door. According to Sakura, this was the emergency exit, where performers could enter and leave unnoticed. It usually remained locked, but Naruto was about to fix that.

With the utter most care, Naruto pulled the door. He pulled the gum from his mouth and wedged it firmly into the auto-lock.

"Excuse me, Miss, but what are you doing?"

Naruto froze. The sound of footsteps drew closer.

Crap!

Naruto spun around and looked straight into the eyes of a burly man wearing a "Security" t-shirt.

"Heh... heh..." Beads of sweat trickled down the curve of his cheek. Quickly, he held up a finger. "Ah! Here's my contact!"

The security guard stopped.

"Oh man, I've looked everywhere for this!" Naruto dashed to one of the mirrors and pulled down on his bottom eye lid.

"Do you need any help, Miss?" The security guard asked.

"Ah... no, I'm fine. I'll head back up to the stage when I get this thing back in. No need to worry about me!"

Naruto watched the security guard back disappear through the doorway, before collapsing to the floor.

_Whew... I'm lucky people still fall for that one._

He sat there panting and reflecting for a moment before getting back to his feet. Quickly, he opened the emergency exit, slid outside, checked to make sure it opened, and disappeared into the afternoon.

-

"Waaaaah! What a long rehearsal!" Ino stretched in the chair before her mirror. "I'm so pumped up for tonight!"

"You did really well, Ino-san." Akari smiled.

"Thank you, Akari-san." Ino leaned to her left. "Didja hear that Haruko-chan?" She sneered.

"Ah, Ino-chan." Sakura scoffed as she sat down at the mirror next her rival, "There's a big difference between doing well and doing good."

A vien throbbed in Ino's temple.

"You think you're so smart."

"I don't have to think it." Sakura retaliated.

"Geez, don't you two ever stop fighting?" A girl said as she passed them on her way to the emergency exit. She stuck her nose in the air. "It's so immature."

Ino stuck out her tongue at the girl's back.

"So many people are leaving already?" Sakura asked as she watched the steady stream of contestants left through the back.

"Well, yeah." Another girl sneered, "You two would be leaving too, if you weren't fighting all the time."

Ino looked over at Akari, who was ready to go, but remained politely seated.

"You don't have to wait for me, Akari-san." Ino smiled as she pulled clips from her hair.

"Oh, I don't mind, Ino-san."

"Don't worry; Shikamaru and Choji are waiting outside. I'll meet you guys at that ramen place."

"O-ok." Akari waved as she followed the others outside.

Sakura scrubbed frantically at her face with a wash cloth, peeling her makeup away. Ino began the same process as the last of the other contestants disappeared.

"I'll see you later tonight." Ino glared she stood up.

"Try not to cry when I beat you." Sakura brushed off her vanity.

Ino walked confidently toward the exit. She yanked the door open and, as she turned back to Sakura to strike back, her hand fell directly over the gum in the auto-lock.

"!!"

Sakura jumped to her feet. She dashed toward door and lodged herself in the frame, forcing a confused Ino into the doors other wall and away from the gum.

"What the hell was that for?!" Ino barked as her shoulder wriggled against Sakura's.

"Nothing! Just shut up. Stupid Ino!"

"Get out of my way!" Ino pushed against Sakura, who pushed back, but to no avail.

"Move!" Ino snapped.

"You move. It's because of your big butt that we're stuck!" Sakura shot back.

The two flailed about in the doorway.

"Ow, watch your elbow!"

"You watch your own elbow, Ino!"

"Shut up and move over!"

"I can't!"

With the squeezing and the shoving, the two inched forward through the doorway. They flew out of it, bouncing off the single step below, and rolling into a heap on the ground.

Sakura moaned and rubbed her head. Ino rotated to her knees on the pavement.

"Nice going, Sakura!"

A breeze blew through the silence.

_CRAAAAP!_ Sakura's mind freaked. She felt her head again to make sure her wig was still on.

"I-I'm sorry." Ino whispered.

Sakura looked over her shoulder. Ino's hunched figure hobbled to a standing position.

"I have to go." Her voice cracked and she started to move away.

"Ino!" Sakura jumped up and grabbed her friend's wrist. The black cloth of Ino's back shook.

"You're so much like her," Ino muttered.

"Ino..." Sakura whispered.

Ino turned on her heel and lunged, sobbing uncontrollably into Sakura's chest.

"That idiot!" Ino yelled, ribbons of water flooding from her squinted eyes. "Why did she have to die!? Why?!"

"I hate her!" Ino slammed her fist into Sakura's shoulder. "That large-foreheaded..." Ino heaved. The two sunk to the ground, where Sakura put her arm around her distraught friend.

"She didn't have to go. She didn't have to die!" Ino wailed. "Why?! I don't understand." Sakura rubbed Ino's head, soothingly.

"It should have been me." Ino continued. "I should have gone. Why didn't I? I'm such an idiot."

"Of course not." Sakura mumbled. Beneath like skin where Ino buried her forehead, Sakura's heart ached. Hadn't she known that her friends would be hurt? She had, but it was different, sitting there, with Ino coming undone in her arms. She bit her lip and silently she wished to take it all back. She wanted to throw off her wig and say "Ino, it's me! Great joke, huh?", but she just sat there, holding Ino, as the sun drifted off into the bleak horizon.

* * *

Author's Notes: Yeah yeah, enough with the sad, sob story. It's getting a bit old, even for me. There won't be any of that stuff in the next couple arcs, I promise. If you have any questions, don't be scared to ask! :)

Next Chapter! The pageant final! The after-party! an unforseen mistake?


	10. Opaque

**Chapter 10: Opaque**

"Are you going to be okay?" Naruto asked Sakura, as the girl dashed around the backstage area.

"Huh?" Sakura squeaked. Sasuke put a hand on her shoulder and she screamed.

"Relax." He whispered and she heaved large gulps of air. "What are you so nervous about? You've made plenty of speeches in front of the Konoha villagers."

"This isn't a speech." Sakura fiddled with her hands. They seemed big and out of place; she couldn't quite figure out what to do with them.

"Sakura-chan, you'll do just fine." Naruto smiled, "Just remember what I told you."

"H-hai."

"We better go find our seats." Sasuke said. "You have everything, right Sakura?"

She nodded vaguely.

The two waved and left the stage.

-

The lights dimmed and the stage lit up. Music so loud you could feel it radiated from the roof of the MegaDome. Sasuke pulled on his collar. Naruto sat on the edge on his seat beside him and further down the line sat Choji, munching on chips, and Shikamaru, looking thoroughly bored.

"Ladies and Gentlemen." A savvy announcer, a small speck on the stage, bellowed at the audience. "We are proud to give you the contestants of the 43rd annual Young Teen Queen Pageant for Kunoichi. Presented by NinCola."

All fifty girls flowed onto the stage, like a flower opening in the sun.

Naruto put a hand to his forehead.

"Where's Sakura-chan?"

"In the middle, next to Ino. Number 14."

Naruto glared at the small speck.

"Oh, I see! Waaah, she looks so pretty."

Sasuke gave him an odd look.

"How can you tell from this distance?"

"Man," Naruto moaned, "why didn't we get better seats?"

"Because we got these for free."

"Cheap."

Sasuke chuckled.

"All of the pearls you see before you have proven that they are the epitome of kunoichi." The announcer rambled on. "But only one will but named the Young Teen Queen of Kunoichi!" The crowd erupted in cheers. "And tonight we will find out which one she is!"

More cheers. Sasuke yawned and stole a glance over at Shikamaru, who looked positively asleep.

The show began. The contestant showed a range of talents from simple henge no jutsu to juggling plates.

"How the hell do they choose these people?" Naruto asked, bored out of his mind, as a contestant preformed a basic bunshin technique.

"It's based on looks." Sasuke answered mundanely, "These things are so fake. It's hardly a talent show."

Most of the crowd, however didn't share Sasuke's sentiments. They rooted and cheered for the beautiful, but talentless girl as she bowed and stepped off the stage. She seemed to have a whole fan club in the row above them.

"Go Miyuki-chan!"

"We love you!"

"You'll win for sure!"

Sasuke rubbed his head in annoyance.

"Number 12." The host announced.

Akari walked onto the stage, wearing what looked like a priestess uniform.

"Akari-chan will be performing the S-ranked sealing technique, the Bloodline Binding Seal."

"Oh really?" Sasuke's interest grew.

"What is it?" Naruto scratched his head.

"A semi-permanent area seal that stops all advanced bloodline techniques and abilities of one or more targets within a given radius."

"Kinda like that seal Jiraiya put on you during your probation?"

"No, that was only good for one person. This technique seals all advanced bloodlines that comes within the circle as long as they stay in that circle."

"I don't get it."

"Just watch, dumbass."

Akari drew 12 sutras from her pockets, six in each hand. She spun dispersing the rectangular paper slips in an even circle around her. She made a hand seal and held it out to full arms length.

"Sealing no Jutsu!" She began. The sutras lifted into the air about three feet and started to glow as did a fine circular line beneath them. Akari motioned a couple more hand seals.

"Bloodline Binding Seal!" She slammed her hands onto the stage. As she did, the sutras plastered themselves to the ground again, each emitting a photonic ray to another, creating a twelve pointed star shape upon the wooden stage. The star glowed, shooting rays of light upward into the endless ceiling of the MegaDome. Akari's clothes billowed toward the sky in the updraft of illumination. After a second, the ray dispersed leaving a glowing mark upon the ground. Akari stood up and wiped a sleeve across her brow.

The crowd danced with enthusiasm.

"Now that was cool." Naruto gawked.

"It's a good thing we won't have to fight her." Sasuke replied wistfully.

With a wave of Akari's hand, the glowing ring disappeared.

"Number 13." The announcer called as Akari walked of the stage.

Ino stepped onto the stage, confidently.

"Go Ino!!" Choji hollered. Sasuke saw Shikamaru jerk awake and sit up right. Sasuke smiled coyly.

Ino asked for five members of the audience. They stood in a row before the crowd, in front of Ino, as she made her signature hand seal.

"Ninpou Shintenshin no Jutsu!"

The strong release on chakra engulfed the crowd and the five figures before them began to do flips and tricks while Ino bowed to her audience. The stadium clapped ferociously.

"Five and still standing?!" Naruto exclaimed, "But she could only do three when we left!"

"She's gotten better." Sasuke muttered as Ino left the stage. "and that's going to be harder for us. I hope Sakura is watching."

"No time for that. She's up next."

-

"Number 14."

Sakura barely heard the announcer as she stepped onto the stage. Her legs felt detached. Her arms tingled. She walked nervously into the center of the stage and stared out into the pitch black and blinding lights. She couldn't see them, but they were there; thousands of people staring at nothing but her. She felt stripped and naked. To the left a man cleared his throat, to the right a woman shuffled uneasily and somewhere far in the back, Naruto's voice screamed something undistinguishable.

But above the nervousness, the image of Ino's anguish resonated in Sakura's mind. Sakura felt her pain, and it clutched at her heart. The music picked up.

_Grasp a strong emotion and run with it. Don't sing with your voice, sing with your heart._ Naruto's words resounded in her mind.

She gripped her microphone and took a deep breath.

She sang. She sang with everything that she was. The emotions she'd bottled up while comforting Ino crawled out of her heart, clambered up her throat, dove off her tongue, and flew like bats out of hell into the black abyss before her.

She sang for Ino. She sang for Tazuna and Inari. She sang for it all.

_Can you here me, Konoha? I'm sorry! I didn't want to run away! Please don't be angry, Godaime, Kakashi-sensei, everyone! I miss you all! I want to go home! Please understand!_

As the song's bridge began, Sakura didn't even notice the tears running down her face or the strength of her voice through the microphone. She just felt. She just was.

-

The crowd roared. Whistles were thrown as Sakura bowed and exited the stage wiping her eyes.

"Incredible." Naruto gasped.

"Looks like she took your advice." Sasuke said. "I wouldn't be surprised if she won."

They listened and watched as the rest of the contestants tried unsuccessfully to approach Sakura's greatness but none came close.

After a couple hours of crap and an intermission, the contestants all gathered on stage again.

"The judges have made they're decision. The second runner-up is...."

A dramatic drum roll thumped through the loud speakers.

"Number 13, Ino"

Ino stepped forward as the crowd cheered. Several show girls came forward and put a bushel of flowers in her arms and a small tiara on her head.

"The first runner-up is..."

Another dramatic drum roll.

"Number 14, Haruko!"

"Aw man," Naruto pouted as Sakura stepped forward to receive her own flowers and slightly larger tiara. "I thought she'd win for sure!"

"Nah," Sasuke grinned as he saw Sakura throw Ino a look. "She did what she said she was going to do. Besides, I think the winner diserves it."

"You know who the winner is?"

"Of course, isn't it obvious?"

Naruto scratched his head.

"And the winner," the host continued, "of the 43rd annual Young Teen Queen Pageant for Kunoichi, presented by NinCola is..."

An even louder drum roll echoed through the stadium.

"... Number 12, Akari!"

"Didn't see that coming." Sasuke whispered sarcastically.

Tears ran down Akari's face as she hugged Sakura and Ino and accepted her crown.

Cheesy, sappy music played as she stood on a risen platform and waved at an adoring crowd.

"Akari-san?!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Don't tell me you're surprised." Sasuke gave Naruto a questioning glance.

Naruto kept his mouth shut.

-

"Congratulations, Akari-san!"

A large VIP room in the east end of the MegaDome danced as the teams of girls, crewmembers and invited guests partied jovially. Pink and purple light flooded the dimly lit room. A dance floor, fully equipped with a DJ swarmed with dozens of happy dancers.

The rest of the guests lined up at a fully-stocked, refreshments buffet or arranged on the many tables ringed by circular couches. Sakura, Ino and Akari all sat at one such couch, munching on crackers. People passed on their jealous congratulations as they waltzed by.

"Th-thank you." Akari muttered and turned back to Ino and Sakura.

"You look tired, Akari-chan." Sakura stood up. "You want me to get you a soda?"

"It's alright. I'll-" Akari started to get up as well, but Sakura put a hand on her shoulder and forced her back into her seat.

"Sit down. I was going to get some snacks anyway."

"O-oh, thank you, Haruko-san."

Sakura swerved around chattering girls and clumsy light technicians to the long spread of lined tables covered with munchies. Sakura moved down the line to the refreshments section and grabbed a random cola. She awkwardly poured in into a plastic cup and set the 2 liter down amongst its friends. Looking around her carefully, Sakura stuck a hand into her pocket and produced a small pill, which she dropped casually into the soft drink.

The liquid bubbled and fizzed, before settling to its tranquil state. Sakura poured a cup for Ino and herself and took all three back to the table.

-

Shallow footsteps echoed on the pavement into the dark.

"Sasuke, what took you so long?" Naruto hissed.

The two boys huddled in the alley behind the emergency exit. They wore the clothes the bought in the Hidden Mist Village and Sasuke had returned his hair to its original style.

"I brought presents." He said, holding up a package.

"?" Naruto peered into the bag and held up a long-sleeved, white, mesh shirt.

"Sakura's clothes?"

"She told me to bring those, but I got something else."

Sasuke dug into the bag and pulled out a piece of black cloth. He threw it to Naruto, who held it up to the dim light. He pulled at the stretchy fabric.

"Ah... Kakashi-sensei style."

"It's time. C'mon let's go."

The two slipped quietly through the emergency door.

-

"I'm still in shock." Akari said as she sipped her cola. "I feel a little guilty."

"Don't be." Ino smiled. "You deserve the crown. That was a really difficult seal."

"Thank you, Ino-san." Akari sighed.

Ino relaxed in her seat.

"I guess I really did lose to you." Ino mumbled to Sakura.

"Don't be an idiot." Sakura swirled the liquid around in her cup. "This stupid contest? It doesn't mean anything."

Ino laughed.

"Yeah," Ino stopped laughing and looked distant. "I wanted to thank you, Haruko, for this afternoon. I feel much better."

Sakura slipped her soda and smiled.

"No problem, Ino-chan."

"I think I can talk about it now." Ino looked at the braid on her wrist.

_I didn't ask, piggy_, Sakura thought.

"Sakura was one of three of my friends who died recently."

Akari gasped.

"Ino-san, I had no idea."

"It's been a little hard to talk about. I don't like thinking of them as dead."

"What were they like, Ino-san?" Akari asked.

Ino laughed.

"Well, they were amazing, all three of them, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura. Naruto was the village idiot, but he was a good idiot. He wasn't smart, or handsome, but his determination was through roof. Out of all of us, he was a born leader. He... had this thing about him... like you didn't want to get outdone by him and somehow you always were." Ino laughed. "He made you a better person just by knowing him..." Sakura smiled. No one actually admitted it to his face, but Naruto was a catalyst for greatness. The entire group agreed on that one.

"Sasuke.... Uwaaaah! He was so fine! He was smart too. He had a lot of problems though. Inner problems, but he got over them. Naruto changed him..."

"Sakura was my rival in everything. Oh, we had so much fun, fighting over Sasuke. Of course, he didn't really care. We stopped fighting over after a while and moved on to other things, the Chuunin exam, whose chest was bigger..." Akari blushed. Sakura snickered to herself. "...she won, but I'm taller!"

Ino scratched her chin.

"I don't really remember when we stopped fighting over Sasuke. I must have been around the time he left for the sound village. Sakura started training really hard with Naruto and I fell for someone else..."

Sakura nearly gagged on her soda. She'd never heard this part; she merely assumed, back then, Ino had labeled Sasuke as an A-ranked asshole and had gave him up for that and only that reason

"Eh?" Sakura leaned in close to Ino, grinning coyly. "Who is this someone else?"

Ino turned red.

"I-it's none of your business."

"Do I know him? Is he on your team?"

Ino turned even redder and tackled Sakura.

A small groan reverberated through Sakura's singing "I know who Ino likes" and Ino's squealing of "Shut up!"

"Huh?" Ino looked up from wringing Sakura's neck. "Akari-san, Are you okay?"

Akari covered her mouth and yawned.

"I don't understand. I'm so tired." Her eyes drooped heavily.

"That sealing technique must have taken a lot out of you." Sakura suggested.

"Yeah," Ino got up and moved to aid Akari. "We should probably take you home."

"But it's so early! I don't want to make you guys leave early. Besides, all I need is a nap; 15 minutes maybe."

"It's okay, Ino-chan. She can sleep in a waiting room and come back when she's rested." Sakura prompted.

"That's a good idea, Haruko. C'mon, Akari-san." Ino put an arm around Akari and lifted her out of her seat. Sakura quickly moved to her other side and together the three hobbled out of the noise, down the hall and into a quiet, vacant, waiting room.

"Are you sure it's okay to leave her here?" Ino asked as they lay Akari's sleeping form on a couch.

"Relax, Ino." Sakura shrugged. "There are security guards everywhere. She'll be fine." Sakura took one last look at Akari, before shutting the door.

_Ok guys, it's all up to you now._

-

"Why are we here, Choji?" Shikamaru meandered slowly behind his boisterous friend as they walk along the side of the MegaDome.

"Ino said she'd bring us a cake." Choji whistled happily.

"She won't be out for a couple of hours." Shikamaru complained.

"Then we'll go grab a meal and come back," Choji smiled, "C'mon Shika, it's not like we have anything better to do."

_Speak for yourself_, Shikamaru looked up into night sky. His stomach gnawed at his insides; he felt jittery and abnormally alive. He had the urge to check up on Ino, but couldn't. Even the stars seemed strange. Something wasn't right.

They moved passively around the Dome, by all the automatic entrances that yawned open in anticipation as they walked by. They were strolling by the emergency exit when Shikamaru stopped.

_This is the only door unguarded..._

He moved up the step and grasped the handle.

"Shika, what are you doing?" Choji called, "That door is always locked, remember?"

Shikamaru tugged on the knob and the door swung freely open.

"!!" Shikamaru noticed something pink in the lock.

_Gum..._

"Choji, we have a situation."

* * *

Aurhtor's notes: Woohoo! NU has passed the 20,000 word mark! YAY! anyway, on to some interesting facts. "Sasuke's probation" - I figured he wouldn't have it easy once he came back from Oro. If I were Hokage, I'd put him on probation, so I did. :)

Thanks much for reading this story! You have no idea how much I appriciate it!

Next Chapter! Battle! Naruto/Sasuke/Sakura vs. Ino/Shika/Cho!


	11. Combustion

Firstly, I'd like to thank everyone for reading this fic! I loves you guys! and I'm sorry if there are typos I didn't catch!

**Chapter 11: Combustion**

Naruto pulled at his face mask. The warm fabric stretched tight over his cheeks. He peered around a corner, into a large hallway, and watched the gargantuan, burly men in dark suits pace before the party's door. Loud music and merry making could be heard inside, but that was not where Naruto put his attention.

The door the room beside it opened and two figures came out, two girls, one tall and blonde, the other shorter with abnormal platinum hair.

"Shikamaru told me not to leave her alone." The blonde was saying.

"Look at all these security guards!" The other assured her friend. "Akari-san will be fine."

The taller made for the door back to the party, when the platinum blonde stopped her.

"Um... Ino, I have to use the restroom. Will you come with me?"

"Sure."

Naruto nodded to Sasuke and, gathering chakra in their hands and feet, the two boys scaled opposite walls and lodged themselves into the high ceiling.

"Did you feel that?" Ino asked as she and Sakura passed below.

"Feel what?"

"Never mind."

The girls disappeared down the corridor. Sasuke nodded to Naruto and they both dropped silently back to the floor and made several hand signals.

_Henge!_

And from the puff of smoke, emerged Ino, and Sakura, disguised as Haruko.

"Opps!" Sakura (Naruto) giggled as she skipped past the guards.

"I can't believe you forgot it." Ino (Sasuke) called as she slowly followed from behind.

"Sorry, sorry."

The guards watched as they entered the waiting room and reappeared several minutes later, Ino carrying Sakura.

"You didn't need to sprain your ankle. Ino reprimanded as she dragged a seemingly unconscious Sakura toward the bathroom. What the guards missed, however, was Sasuke, silently stealing away on the ceiling.

The group pulled around the corner and continued down it in the direction of the bathroom. They traveled quite a ways, almost to all the way to the bathroom, but ducked swiftly into a janitor's closet next door.

Once inside, there was a puff of smoke. Ino turned into Naruto and Sakura turned into Akari's sleeping form. Sasuke put a finger to his lips. Naruto nodded in acknowledgement and they both pushed their ears to the door. Several minutes passed in silence. Naruto fidgeted nervously.

The faint sound of footsteps echoed down the hall, gradually growing louder.

-

"What took you so long?" The real Ino scolded as she and Sakura left the bathroom and passed the janitor's closet on their way back to the party. "What are you, constipated?"

Sakura laughed sheepishly. She looked back at the closet, but froze, seeing something else instead. Her heart thumped loudly in her chest; she had to cough to keep breathing.

"Ah... I-Ino, I just remembered. I forgot something in the bathroom. Go on without me, okay?"

Without waiting for an answer, Sakura doubled back and slid into the bathroom.

"H-hey!" Ino began as Sakura's fleeing figure disappeared.

"INO!" Her gaze extended down the corridor. Shikamaru and Chouji dashed at her in full sprint and skidded to a halt before her.

"Shika? Chouji? What the hell-?" She scratched her head as they bent over panting.

Shikamaru lunged and grasped Ino by the shoulders.

"Ino, are you okay? Where's Akari?"

Ino blinked in surprise.

"I'm fine. Akari's asleep in a waiting room."

Shikamaru grabbed her hand and pulled her in the direction of the party.

"Show me!"

"Wait, Shikamaru, what's going on? How did you get in here?"

"I'll explain on the way. Now hurry!"

-

Sakura opened the closet door and Naruto, Sasuke, and the unconscious Akari came tumbling out.

"You heard that didn't you?" She said standing solemnly over them.

The two boys stood up and brushed themselves off. Sasuke handed Sakura the bag of her clothes.

"Put these on and let's get out of here."

-

Using the transformation/stealth technique to get by the guards, Shikamaru, Ino, and Chouji snuck into the waiting room.

"See, she's fine." Ino said as they looked at Akari asleep on the couch. "It must've been someone else."

"Don't be so sure." Shikamaru pulled a kunai from his satchel and flung it as Akari's sleeping form.

"Hey! Shika, what-?"

The kunai struck Akari square in the back. She buckled forward, before turning into a couch cushion.

Ino gasped.

"They can't have gotten very far." Shikamaru said turning toward the door. "There's only one unguarded exit and they haven't left through it yet. I put a seal on the door; I'll know if it's been reopened. Ino, what's the fastest way to the dressing room."

"Straight through the Arena." She whispered as they snuck past the guards.

"Then that's the way the captors are going. Hurry!"

As soon as they reached an unguarded passage, Team 10 sprinted off toward the MegaDome's interior.

-

Sakura dashed out of the bathroom, stashing her wig and white dress in the now empty sack.

"Your hair is black again." Naruto pointed out.

"Yeah, I had a feeling Shikamaru would figure it out, so I dyed it last night."

"That's also why you asked me to bring your clothes." Sasuke muttered, adjusting Akari on his shoulders.

Sakura pulled the face masked over her head as the three scaled the wall and began using the intricate ceiling as a road.

"You said it before," Sakura latched her red dagger around her waist. "'Never underestimate the power of Akamaru's nose.' Shikamaru's brain power is the same way. There is a reason he was promoted before any of the rest of us. Sasuke, do you want me to carry her?" Sasuke, the fastest sprinter of the three, lagged behind her.

"Sure," Sasuke passed Akari to Sakura, who hefted the unconscious girl as easily as a rag doll. With Sakura's strength, Akari's weight had no effect on her pace.

The trio dashed down several empty hallways, finally stopping at a flight of stairs. They dropped to the floor and climbed the stairs, throwing themselves against the large double door at the top. The doors swung open violently, hurling the four bodies onto a dirty red carpet. They stood up and looked out over the brightly lit MegaDome, with it's thousands of seats and bleachers. The massive inward arch bellowed down hundreds of feet below them and far away, at the other end of the stadium, the wooden stage stood tall against the dark rows of cushioned chairs.

"And I thought our seats were bad." Naruto muttered as he squinted at the stage.

Sasuke jumped up onto a seat, which creaked intolerantly beneath him.

"Let's get out of here."

Naruto and Sakura followed his lead and stepped onto the creaky seats. Gingerly, they hopped over the rows, falling downward toward the stage, narrowly avoiding falling into the seats at times. They reached the circular rim where the permanent seats ended and the arena, filled with makeshift bleachers for the pageant, began. They dashed through the aisles, over the assorted NinCola cans and up to the stage, sitting 6 feet above the crowd.

Sasuke clambered up first and took Akari as Sakura pulled herself up after him. Leaving their cargo asleep on the plywood, Sakura and Sasuke craned over the edge, each lending an arm to Naruto.

"C'mon, Shortie." Sakura teased.

"Shaddap." Naruto hissed as he grabbed their wrists and hoisted himself up, flailing in midair for a moment.

Sakura picked herself up and dusted herself off and moved toward Akari.

"I'll get her, Sakura." Sasuke called as he pushed himself off the plywood stage.

"You sure?"

"Yeah." Sasuke stepped forward to pick her up.

Naruto twitched uneasily. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up on end. A chill ran down his spine and he shuddered. Naruto coughed. It felt like something lodged itself in his throat. He shook his head to shake the feeling and looked up to see Sasuke, frozen in motion, before Akari.

"What are you doing, stupid?" Naruto taunted, still fighting the chill in his back.

"Sasuke...?" Sakura began.

Sasuke's fake blue eyes rotated toward Naruto. They stretched wide on his face, a dangerous, open glare, and when they paused at Naruto, he nearly jumped. Naruto was about to yell at Sasuke for the look, but Sasuke's gaze didn't stop. With a difficult effort, Sasuke's head moved a degree and his eyes snapped to an area behind him.

Naruto rubbed his prickled neck, confused, until he noticed at the unusual, black shape on the ground. Sasuke's shadow stretched off the stage, through a littered temporary, up the arena wall and up a stepped aisle, where it became one with the shadow of the panting silhouette of Shikamaru.

The shadow lengthened a full hundred feet between the two boys.

"I guess Ino's not the only one who's been doing extra training." Sasuke muttered spitefully.

Shikamaru's other two companions raced through the swinging double door behind him. Without pausing to look at their enemies, each dashed down an aisle adjacent to Shika and stopped short at the arena's rim.

"Give up the girl and no one gets hurt." Shikamaru commanded. Ino brandished a pink string laced kunai. Chouji puffed out his cheeks.

"Naruto, Sakura," Sasuke mumbled, "Take Akari and go. I'll hold them off."

"So they can capture you, find out your secret and drag you back to Konoha?" Sakura braced herself. "I don't think so."

Naruto stood and glared at Shikamaru.

"Bring it on, idiot. I'll kick your ass."

Shikamaru flinched slightly and made a few quick steps forward. Naruto bound off the stage and into the air.

"Kage Bunshin no Justsu." He cried as twenty copies of himself exploded into the air, the entire group landing on Shikamaru's shadow road. Shikamaru winced as his technique engulfed the twenty-one new masses and broke the black trail. Sasuke straightened and jumped backward, avoiding three of kunai thrown by Ino, who dashed around the arena's edge. Two of the small knives thudded into the plywood stage, Sakura move in and snatched the last out of the air, gripping it tightly as Ino pounced at her. Sparks flew as the two rivals met kunai to kunai, metal to metal, as Ino leapt on to the stage.

The stage shook behind them as Chouji landed and began swinging at Sasuke.

Ino pushed hard against Sakura's strength, but the other easily flung her away with the push of her arm. Ino sailed into the arena wall and groaned as she hit it hard and fell into a lump on the ground.

"Ino!" Shikamaru called as he ran a kunai through one of Naruto's shadow clones. The blonde grunted as she picked herself up.

The stage quaked behind Sakura. She turned around to see Sasuke skillful leap away from a large arm sweeping down vertically at her. Sakura raised her own arm to block the massive form. Chouji yelled as they collided. Sakura held her ground, but the plywood beneath her didn't. It cracked and blew up under her; shards of wood flew in every direction as she plummeted 6 feet to the earthen floor.

Blowing splinters out of his face, Sasuke shot across the stage, snatched up Akari's limp figure and bounded out of harm's way, off the stage and onto the arena wall above Ino. He gingerly placed Akari in a seat and quickly held up a kunai as Ino slashed at him.

Sasuke ducked as Ino slashed at him again, her kunai swiping a centimeter off his hair. He dodged in close, his face drawing closer to hers. Their noses brushed; Sasuke could feel her breath on his lips.

The move was just the tip of a complex Taijutsu style called "The Dance of the Forbidden Lovers." Sakura said it was created by a husband and a wife who were forced to fight on the battlefield. The two moved close together, brushing sensitively against each other, but still maintaining the ferocity of combat. Amongst veteran ninja, the style was an intimate serenade of passion and the longing to be close to someone, but in this case it was basic psychology.

"Ah..." Ino blushed deeply as Sasuke leaned in close and faltered. He took the opportunity to place his hands on her shoulders and push her off the railing. Ino fell back into the arena with a yelp.

Sasuke grinned as he hopped over the rail and landed gracefully beside Ino. At least he wasn't the only one who fell for that. The almost-kiss was the only reason he and Naruto ever lost to Sakura, who seemed to be a master at it.

Meanwhile, Shikamaru ducked behind a seat as Naruto fired a shuriken at his head. He slid down the row, as Naruto pelted the seat with shuriken, and popped up at the end of the line of chairs. Shikamaru threw a shuriken at the unsuspecting black-haired shrimp; it flew straight into his head, before turning the figure into a puff of smoke.

Shikamaru cursed himself, and looked around uneasily. A shadow appeared below him, and Shikamaru dodged Naruto's fist as it slammed into the seat's backing. Naruto pulled a spin kick (which Shikamaru dodged easily) before landing in front of Shikamaru. The two fought hand to hand, each blocking the other's attacks, for a few moments before Shikamaru ran his kunai through Naruto.

Shikamaru smiled as Naruto winced. The stood in still motion before Naruto once again disappeared in a puff of smoke.

The smoke billowed around Shikamaru. He held up his arms in blind defense, but a solid fist hit him square in the jaw anyway. Shikamaru flew back down the row a couple feet before grasping the ground and recovering. The Bunshin smoke plumed, the real, black-haired Naruto standing on the other side. The two glared at each other, like cowboys at a showdown, as the smoke wafted in a nonexistent breeze.

Sasuke dodged Ino's attacks cautiously. He swerved to the side as her kunai nicked his cheek, cutting through the facemask and into his skin. Crimson blood rolled down the side of his face.

_Crap, I'll have to take this more seriously,_ he thought as he smeared the blood away with his wrist.

Ino lashed out with the kunai, but this time Sasuke was ready. He ducked and grabbed her wrist, rolling around behind her. Ino cried out as Sasuke pinned her arm to her back. She tried to grab him with her free hand but he grabbed it first.

"Let her go or I kill your friend." A menacing voice echoed through the stadium. Sasuke looked up into the looming eyes of Shikamaru, filled with an insane killer intent. Sasuke glanced to the right, where Naruto stood frozen, a shadowy hand creeping up his side.

Sasuke cursed under his breath. The two glared at each other, each waiting for the other to make a move.

On the stage, Chouji had grown tired of throwing shuriken into the hole. Sakura dodged around beneath him like a mouse in a maze, looking for an opportunity. Chouji took a deep breath.

"Multi-Size no Justu!"

Chouji expanded and fell flat over the stage. His tremendous mass crushed the wood. Fractured planks flew out at odd angels. Sasuke grabbed Ino around the waist and bounded up into the stands, avoiding the largest meteors of wood.

Shikamaru braced against the spray of splinters.

_Sakura-chan!_ Naruto's mind raced. _Oi! Fox! Gimme some juice!_

... _Why?_

'_Cause I said so, dammit!_

_I do not care if you 'said so.'_

_Bastard! If I die, we both die! So shut the hell up and lend me your power!_

_You are not convincing._

Chouji grinned. Success; the black haired girl couldn't have survived. Chouji's spherical form rolled about then stopped suddenly. He felt something moving around beneath him.

Shikamaru watched Chouji as his friend's face turned from delight to horror. A loud crunching of wood whispered from underneath Chouji's gut. A loud primal scream echoed through the stadium as Sakura stood up like an Olympic weight-lifter, Ino's kunai between her gritted teeth, Chouji raised over her head.

Something more astonishing happened on Shikamaru's left. A giant surge of chakra emitted from his captive, destroying the shadowy trial connecting them. Shikamaru looked from him to Chouji and back again, before noticing in terror that his sightly, round friend was flying straight at him.

Sakura threw Chouji at Shikamaru with all her strength. Chouji resized, but it did little good. He collided head on with Shikamaru; the area exploded into smoke, the stadium shook and Sakura heaved with the effort.

"Shikamaru! Chouji!" Ino cried as she struggled against Sasuke. Sasuke stuck his pinky behind her ear and she went limp.

The dust cleared as Naruto approached Chouji's landing spot. A large, unruly dent had engraved itself in the aisle, a bowl filled with Shikamaru and Chouji. Naruto put a finger to their necks.

"Alive." Naruto called over his shoulder. "Damn it, Sakura-chan! Were you trying to kill them?!"

"Sorry," Sakura wheezed. She hunched over, blood dripping from her many splinter wounds.

"Are you okay?" Naruto hopped down the rows of seats, off the arena wall and ran up to her.

"Yeah," Sakura nodded breathlessly, "Let's just get out of here. Somebody must have heard that."

"But what about Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino?" Naruto looked around at their still forms.

"They'll be fine." Sasuke approached them, carrying Akari. He turned to Naruto. "Let's go. We'll miss our boat."

Together, the three left the building.

* * *

Author's Note: Whew, that chapter took forever!!! Seriously! I suck majorly at action sequences. I practically had to draw out a storyboard for this one. The original idea was to use teamwork, an even three on three, but that was too hard to manage. Then I switched to Sasuke/Naruto vs. Shika/Chouji and Ino vs. Sakura, but that didn't make any sense strength wise. So I paired them up based on strength. :) Although, working with Team 10's jutsus was difficult because their team isn't really designed for fighting as much as infiltration. I'm also sorry about the constant changing of perspective, I bet that was confusing. To make it clearer, ShikaInoCho still don't know their attackers are Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke. It was just easier to call them by name than "black haired boy."

About Ino: If you're wondering why Team 7 didn't poison Ino also, it's because 1. It would have been too suspicious with two unconcious bodies, 2. Ino probably would have tasted the poison and would have found Sakura out. 3. Naruto and Sasuke needed to use her as a decoy (remember they both henged, so they needed two people) Sorry if I didn't explain that well enough. ;)

About Shikamaru: I believe I mentioned that he took a few steps forward while using the shadow bind without his captive moving. I didn't get it wrong, it's a new ability, but the movement is very limited. So don't sue me!

Next Chapter: The Aftermath! the solace of InoShikaCho! Returning Akari to her father! Journies into Outer Space ( well, that's not true... but the rest is!)


	12. Solace

Thank you everyone who has read this fic, even if you didn't like it. I love you guys!

**Chapter 12: Solace**

The gleaming white of the hospital room cleared Sakura's mind as she sat, disguised as Haruko, next to Ino, then events of last night floating softly through her mind.

Once the three had reached their hotel room, Naruto and Sasuke grabbed their things and left with Akari. They would take return her to her father while Sakura took care of their alibi and her prize money. "She had been knocked out by three strange mask-wearing villains in the bathroom." That was her story and she was sticking to it.

Sakura yawned. She had stayed up all night pulling splinters out of her arms and healing herself so she wouldn't look suspicious. She should've slept in, but her guilty at cracking three of Shikamaru's ribs and one of Chouji's vertebras overwhelmed her.

Shikamaru sat upright in his roll away bed, the blankets littered with junk: a newspaper, several cookies from the party buffet, the shuriken Naruto had thrown at him, Ino's blood laced kunai from when she sliced Sasuke, and several used poison-test swabs. Akari's plastic cup rotated in his hand as he penetrated deep thought.

"Sleeping agent." Shikamaru announced, concluding his test. "It was an inside job. Haruko, are you sure you didn't see anyone put anything in this cup?"

"Yes, but I was fighting with Ino, so I wasn't really looking."

Ino huddled in a visitor's chair, her face sullen; she looked like she hadn't slept either. Sakura put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry; I'm sure she's alright."

Ino didn't look convinced.

"I can't do anything right. Everyone always disappears." She rubbed the memorial braid on her wrist.

Across the room, Chouji stopped munching his promised cake and gave Ino a sympathy look. Shikamaru looked at her softly (it was a small look but Sakura noticed and laughed to herself), smiled and threw the newspaper at Ino.

Ino caught it mechanically, and looked quizzically at Shikamaru.

"Read the headline."

Ino glance at the front page and gasped.

"'Usomaru Arrested for Pageant Fraud,' this is the guy who hired us!" Ino pointed to a picture of a tubby, balding man being carried away in handcuffs, "What's going on?"

"Keep reading, dummy." Shikamaru picked up a cookie, reclined lazily in his bed and stuck it nonchalantly in his mouth.

"'Business mogul Usomaru was arrested today for fraud involving the Young Teen Queen Pageant for Kunoichi (Presented by NinCola) which aired yesterday on Sea Breeze Island. Usomaru kidnapped the winner, Akari, prior to the competition from the Sorano Fuuka Post-Academy School of Seal Jutsu and blackmailed her into participating. Usomaru was taken into custody early this morning and refused to comment. Pageant Officials say that Akari will be allowed to keep her title as Young Teen Queen of Kunoichi and her prize money will be sent directly to her home in Biscuit Island. For more on this and the Pageant details and winners, see PAGEANT page A7.'" Ino looked up.

"Do you think those three knew about this?" She asked Shikamaru.

"I dunno." He wiggled the cookie back and forth in his teeth. "But wherever she is right now can't be all that worse than where she was. She's a public figure now, it's not like she's going to up and disappear. But I don't think they want to hurt her. The tallest attacker moved her out of the way of Chouji's attack. I'm sure she's fine."

Ino put the paper down and thought it over for a minute, then relaxed and smiled.

"Yeah..." She sighed. "Hey Shika, pass me a cookie."

Shikamaru looked offended.

"Why?"

"Well, I sure as hell won't be able to get any cake off Chouji. C'mon, just one?"

"I thought you were on a diet." Shikamaru bit his cookie.

"Why are you bringing that up?"

"You said it."

"Who cares? Now give me a damn cookie!"

"Why should I?"

"Idiot!"

"Man-woman."

Ino pounced and tackled Shikamaru into a headlock. He didn't resist, only looked annoyed as she strangled him.

"You bastard! I wish that girl would've just finished you off!"

"Ino... you're... hurting me."

"Yeah, that's the point!"

Chouji laughed as the two struggled and squabbled.

"It's good to see Ino back to her old self." He chuckled to Sakura. "It may not look like it but Shikamaru was really worried."

Sakura watched the two of them arguing and saw Shikamaru crack a rare smile.

"Yeah, I can tell." Sakura chuckled.

_Good friends are the best medicine._

Shikamaru and Chouji were released later that day, with stern instructions from their nurse to not do anything drastic. Sakura sighed with relief; she didn't feel quite as guilty with them walking around again.

Together, the four of them walked back to the MegaDome to collect Ino and "Haruko"'s prizes.

"Haruko," Shikamaru began as the receptionist handed Sakura a large, velvet covered box and an envelope. "What happened to your bodyguards, Pakkun and Takkun?"

A bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face as she rushed to make up a story.

"They... uh... had something they needed to take care of. They're going to pick me in a couple days, I think."

"You don't sound so sure..." He eyed her quizzically.

"I don't know much about them. They're new bodyguards" Sakura muttered realizing she was incriminating herself. "Um... Ino! What did you get?" She turned quickly to Ino as the pale blonde opened her box.

"Oh, it's just that tiara and a necklace. The envelope has a check in it. You've probably got the same stuff." Ino pulled out the necklace. The bronze pendant glimmered like a star in the florescent light of the reception hall.

"You're going to wear that?" Shikamaru cocked his head quizzically.

"Yeah, I may not have won, but it's still pretty. Besides, it's quite an honor to be second runner-up. Hundreds of girls auditioned and I was a winner."

Shikamaru turned his back on her.

"You still lost to Haruko." He muttered and Ino's velvet covered box ricocheted off his head.

"Ow..."

Sakura lifted her necklace out of her own box and looked at it. A diamond-cut chunk of glass sat in the middle of the sliver elliptical pendant. On the back, scrawled in tiny letters, was "Haruko, 1st Runner-Up. Young Teen Queen of Kunoichi." And the year. Sakura latched it firmly around her neck.

"Can we go now?" Shikamaru muttered as he moved through the automatic doors. "We're going to miss our boat."

-

"It's too bad that you guys are leaving so soon"

A half an hour later, the four of them stood at the dock, InoShikaCho preparing to board. The sun drifted slowly into an endless sea as it painted the sky day-glow pink and purple with brushes of salty sea breeze.

"Yeah, we have to file a report quickly and move on to our next mission." Chouji explained, "Konoha doesn't have many ninja anymore."

Ino stepped down from the platform and embraced Sakura.

"It was such a pleasure meeting you Haruko, thank you for everything."

"It was nothing, Ino-chan." The two pulled apart.

"We'll meet again, right?" Ino looked sad.

Sakura smiled and the boat bellowed loudly. Ino stepped backward onto the ship with her comrades.

"It was nice to meet you, Haruko." Chouji called as the boat began to pull away. Shikamaru merely smiled.

"Goodbye Ino, Shikamaru Chouji. You take care of yourselves!" Sakura hollered as the boat retreated out onto open water. They waved back at her as the boat got smaller and smaller.

When they were nothing but a speck in the brilliant, spectral dusk, Sakura reached into her pocket and pulled out Ino's kunai. She'd absent-mindedly brought it with her when they stole Akari. Sakura fingered the pink strap on the handle and noticed something painted on the cylindrical bead. She giggled to herself as she recognized the symbol. Drawn into the beads face was the picture of a pig.

Sakura stared out at the speck receding in the distance, grasped the top of her wig and yanked it off. The salty, coastal breeze tousled her black hair like grass in a meadow.

"Yes, Ino." she whispered into the fading light. "We will most defiantly meet again."

Sakura turned her back to the sunset, a greater issue pressing her mind: that influx of chakra Naruto emitted during the fight. Chakra didn't come from nowhere; and this wasn't even regular chakra. There was something sinister about it, almost... demonic. Was this the reason Akasuki wanted Naruto so badly? As the night melted into the atmosphere, Sakura mind began a decoding.

-

Sasuke put down his newspaper and watched Shinrimaru and Akari snuggle together.

"This is good news." Sasuke said nonchalantly to the others as they sat around the fire pit in Shinrimaru's hut.

"I'm just happy you're okay." Shinrimaru squeezed his daughter.

"And I'm happy _you're_ okay, dad." Akari giggled.

Naruto smiled spitefully. All loving families made him feel a little sad.

"Thank you so much for bringing my little girl home to me!" Shinrimaru grabbed Naruto's hand and nearly yanked if off. "And... wasn't there three of you?"

"Akane is still on Sea Breeze Island." Sasuke answered.

"Here's your pay." Shinrimaru handed them a small feather-heavy packet.

"No problem." Sasuke accepted the package. "So what are you going to do now?"

"Well," Akari began, "I want to stay here with my father for a while. We can move into a better house with the money I won from the pageant."

"That's wonderful." Naruto smiled.

"What are you guys planning to do?" Akari asked.

Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other and then back at their audience.

"Honestly, we don't know. Maybe more missions." Sasuke shurgged.

"In that case, I have a request." Akari reached into her pocket and produced a piece of paper, upon which the name "Kouji" was scribbled.

"Can you give this to my boyfriend?"

Sasuke accepted the letter as Shinrimaru squealed, "No dating until after you're married!"

"You want us to go to Sorano Fuuka in Lightning Country?" Sasuke inquired further.

"Please." Akari threw off her father's grumbling, "I never got a chance to say goodbye to him. He's probably worried sick. I can pay you." She reached into her pocket.

"No need." Sasuke looked the letter over. "We'll do this one for free."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Naruto reclined against the driftwood wall of the hut. "We're not ninjas for cash."

"In return, we ask that you tell no one of our involvement here." Sasuke waved the letter around a bit.

Akari and Shinrimaru exchanged glances.

"You guys aren't... criminals, are you?" Shinrimaru asked cautiously.

Sasuke chuckled spitefully.

"No, just careful. So where can we find this guy?"

"He goes to the Sorano Fuuka, just like me. You can look him up in the registry; it's a public record."

"Ok, we'll get this letter to him." Sasuke stuck the letter in his vest pocket, and he and Naruto moved toward the door. They turned back as they stepped over the threshold.

"Thank you again so much." Akari shook their hands.

"Yes," Shinrimaru did the same before turning to his daughter, "Now tell me about this boyfriend of yours..."

Naruto and Sasuke tread along the beach, away from Shinrimaru's cabin, in silence. The sand mixed gently with their feet. Several minutes passed, neither of them spoke.

"Sasuke," Naruto began suddenly. Sasuke looked up. "Do you think Iruka-sensei misses me like Shinrimaru missed Akari?" Naruto looked at the sand beneath his toes. It sank under him as he put his feet on it. Sasuke eyed his friend and smirked.

"Of course not." He said boldly.

Naruto cringed and laughed a little.

"Yeah, who would miss me?" Naruto smiled, but his eyes didn't lie. Sasuke saw the pain reflected his cerulean pools.

"Iruka-sensei doesn't miss you like Shinrimaru missed Akari, but he probably still misses you. Shinrimaru knew Akari was alive, he knew she was out there. Iruka-sensei doesn't know that about you. (At least, I don't think he does) I'm sure he misses you more than you'll ever know. Now stop feeling sorry for yourself."

Naruto thought it over for a moment.

"Yeah, you're right." Naruto grinned sheepishly at Sasuke, "Thanks."

Sasuke only smiled as they made their way across the beach.

* * *

Author's "End-of-Arc" Notes: A slightly ShikaIno chapter, I hope no one minds. I needed some manner of comic relief in here, so I threw them together! (Of course, If you've been reading carefully, you'd have noticed the ShikaIno already. I don't think I hid it that well). I'd like to apologize to all the Chouji fans out there (I'm one too.) I really gave him the short end of the stick in this last arc. I was conflicted with the story line and trying to stay true to his character. I don't know all that much about how he speaks, or how he would react in certain situations. (This comes easiest for me with Sasuke and Sakura which is probably why they get so much spotlight. Naruto is difficult because he's changed so much since the beginning of the series, there are very few things that stay true to him,... hence all the ramen stuff.) 

Ok, so the pageant thing was a little cheesy. Personally, I hate pageants, you can probably tell. ;) The next arc is a little more in depth. I've added a new element to the story, so it should get a little more interesting.

For those who are curious, this isn't a spontaneous fic. Most everything I add in this story will make an appearance later, and/or has a purpose. The last arc has been sorted out to the syllable, so if seems like I'm giving certain things too much detail, trust me, there's probably a reason.

Next Chapter: A new Arc begins! To Sorano Fuuka we go!!


	13. Innovation

Ok, not going to waste time rambling. Naruto's not mine, as sad as it may be. I would, of course, like to thank everyone for reading this fic. I makes the hours I spend writing it worth while. :)

**Chapter 13: Innovation**

"Bleh!" Naruto sputtered ramen out of his mouth.

Sasuke threw him a dangerous black-eyed glare, having thrown away his contacts. They sat at a small, round table beneath a large, red umbrella. The hot summer air mingled around the small outdoor café like a mosquito. The waves crashed on a nearby beach and Naruto and Sasuke sat around waiting, amidst other happy tourists, Naruo with his ramen, Sasuke with a simple cup of water.

"You're going to get us thrown out." Sasuke hissed.

"I don't care! At least I won't be stuck with this nasty ramen. Geez, don't these people know how to cook?"

"You don't have to eat it."

"I hate wasting ramen." Naruto pushed the bowl away. "What's wrong with these people? The ramen on that Sea Breeze place was nasty too."

Naruto grabbed Sasuke's water and gulped it down, washing the sickly taste out of his throat. A vein throbbed in Sasuke's temple as his water disappeared.

"Maybe there's something wrong with you." He sneered.

Naruto hurled the empty cup at Sasuke. Sasuke moved to duck, but the cup stopped firmly in mid-air, a delicate hand clasped tightly around it.

"Don't you two ever stop fighting?"

A girl with shoulder-length black hair and dancing green eyes grinned at them as she grasped the cup firmly in her hand.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto brightened. "You made it! How was your boat ride?"

"About as good as could be expected." She pulled up a chair and sat down. "What about you guys?"

"Good, good." Naruto grinned. "That necklace looks pretty on you."

Sakura returned his smile and ruffled his hair.

"Why thank you Naruto. It was one of the prizes I got for winning. Ino got one too."

"So how are they, Ino, Shikamaru and Chouji?" Sasuke reclined against his wicker chair and stuck a toothpick in his mouth.

"Shikamaru and Chouji had minor fractures, but they were able the leave the day after you guys did. The MegaDome's owner said they weren't going to file charges against them for damaging the bleachers."

"Alright!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Especially since it was you who destroyed them, Sakura." Sasuke added.

Sakura glared at him, but didn't retaliate.

"How did they take their defeat?" Sasuke continued.  
"Well, they were fine after they saw the paper. Shikamaru figured it out though, about the scheme. I really hope we don't bump into them again. Shikamaru'll figure us out for sure."

"They won't be a problem where we're going." Sasuke reached into his vest.

"Huh?" Sakura blinked.

Sasuke pulled out Akari's letter and handed it to her.

"Akari wants us to deliver that to her boyfriend. "Naruto piped up.

Sakura turned the letter over, read the name scrawled across it and turned it over again.

"All the way up in Lightning Country?"

"Yup." Naruto nodded.

"Sorano Fuuka, to be more precise." Sasuke added.

Sakura pulled the map out of her backpack and, as Sasuke hastily removed the rejected ramen, spread it across the table.

"Hmmm..." Sakura dragged her finger across the scroll and over the border of Lightning Country. "Sorano Fuuka is located in a coastal town called Sorano." She mumbled.

"That fits." Sasuke muttered cynically.

"Here." Sakura pointed to a black speck on the border on a inlet. "It's not all that far away. Nothing more than a couple days by boat."

"Then it's settled!" Naruto cheered. "On to Lightning Country!"

"Not so fast." Sakura gave them a stern look, "How much money do you guys have?"

Sasuke reached into his vest again and pulled out the envelope. It contained nothing more than a few bills.

"But it shouldn't be an issue." He said, craning to look at Sakura's shadowed face. A bead of sweat rolled down her cheek. "Not with all that prize money you won, Sakura."

Sakura looked up, her face distressed. Her comrades gave her questioning looks.

"To prevent theft and fraud, the Pageant committee puts the prize money in a vault, accessible only by the recipient." She explained.

Sasuke groaned and hung his head in understanding.

"What? What's wrong?" Naruto's head swerved between his friends.

"Naruto," Sakura gave him an exasperated look. "The prize money is written out to 'Haruko.' Haruko can't accept the prize money. We made her up! Haruko doesn't exist, dumbass!"

"W-wait a minute!" Naruto yelped, "You mean the money is there, but you can't get it!? Can't you just dress up again?"

"And what's to say she's not someone else?" Sasuke sighed, "They probably need a birth certificate or a photo ID or something."

"But that money Tazuna-jisan gave us...?"

Sakura's shoulders sagged.

"You mean after all the supplies we bought in the Hidden Mist Village; 2-way boat rides for all three of us to Biscuit and Sea Breeze; renting a dress, a wig, and two suits; and staying for a week in a hotel, not to mention food? I'm surprised we stretched it that far."

"So in other words..." Naruto began.

"We're broke!" They cried in unison, their three chins hitting the table at the same time. The updraft blew the flimsy envelope of the money Shinrimaru into the air.

"So what are we going to do?" Naruto whispered as he watched the feather-like packet descend back to the table. "Man! and Akari was going to pay us too!"

"No one's going to let us ride for free." Sakura pointed out.

The fresh breeze blew through their pow-wow.

Sasuke said what they all were thinking.

"We're going to have to get jobs."

-

After a night of sleeping on the beach, the team began to patrol the dock. The "Help Wanted" board held sparse comments about positions. The three strained their eyes against the warm sea breeze as the glared at the postings.

Sasuke looked around uneasily.

"There are few people here." He thought aloud.

Sakura nodded in agreement

"Compared to the Hidden Mist's Freelance Bureau, this place is deserted. I wonder why."

"Ah-ha!" Naruto reached up and grabbed one. "Look, this one's even going to Sorano! Lucky!"

Sakura and Sasuke leaned into Naruto's shoulders to get a better look.

"'Help Want: Ship hands needed on route to Sorano in Lightning Country. Must be 18 or older. Apply at A- 5.'" Sakura read, "Naruto, that's not going to work. We need to be 18."

"Or an 18 year-old equivalent in physical strength and maturity." Sasuke had already begun his strides down Dock A. "Let's take a look at this one."

Sakura rubbed her head,

"'Ship hands'...?" Naruto penetrated deep thought as he looked down at his fingers.

"Idiot." Sakura flicked him playfully between the eyes.

"Ow!"

"Stop trying to make stupid puns!" She nagged and they both dashed after Sasuke.

-

The boat dock in A-5 was average-sized, like a house boat, or smaller yacht. It bobbed up and down in the current as the team approached it. A burly figure moved hastily around on it. He was tan and covered in scars.

"Um... Excuse me." Sakura called to him as he tightened ropes.

The man straightened, rubbing his hands into a small towel.

"How may I help you?"

"Did you post this?" Sasuke held up the ad.

The man looked at them curiously, and then burst out into a loud guffaw.

"You? You kids want to take on this job?" He cackled mightily. Other sailors looked their direction; some clambered off their ships to circle around the three.

A vein pulsated in Naruto's forehead.

"You have a problem with that, old man?"

The man laughed louder.

"Kid, I don't know where you come from, but it's obviously isn't any place smart." The bystanders were cackling now two. Naruto bit his lip. He had the sudden urge to unleash all of Kyuubi's demon strength on their heckler. The man picked a spear off his deck and hopped down to stand squarely in front of Naruto.

"You see this little boy?" The man sneered, talking childishly. His fellow pirates laughed and pointed. "This is called a harpoon. You see, the water between here and Lightning country is very instable and is full of all sorts of monsters, especially this time of year. (_Oh, so that's why there was no one at the bulletin,_ Sakura thought.) I wouldn't want you to hurt your ickle self, kiddy. Go home to your mother!"

The peanut gallery roared with laughter. Naruto flushed; the seams of his self-control stretched and snapped. He felt the power surge within him and his animalistic urge to tear this man about threatened to act on its own. A calm hand landed gently on his shoulder and dragged him back to his senses. Naruto looked at its owner. Sakura smiled at him and removed her hand.

Sasuke leaned forward.

"May I see this?" He lifted the harpoon out of the hysterical man's hands. The man stopped laughing and chuckled slightly. His friends made snide remarks, but Sasuke threw them off. Instead, he pointed to the sign reading "Dock A" a hundred feet away.

"You see that 'A'?" He asked the man.

"Yeah. So?" The man snickered.

"That 'A' is your 'monster.'" Sasuke hefted the harpoon with both hands, took a running step and hurled the spear. It soared through the air like a missile and landed with a loud 'thunk' in the triangle of the A.

No one laughed. The sailors stood jaws askew, in disbelief.

"Greater men have underestimated us." Sasuke announced, his back to the man, "I wouldn't advise the same for you. We're willing to do this job for you; you might as well accept us." Sasuke turned around.

The man sighed and clasped Sasuke's hand.

"My name is Yoshitaka, welcome to the crew. What's your name?"

Sasuke smiled.

"Sasuke."

* * *

Author's Notes: dun dun dun... ok, so there's not that much suspense, but who cares? Yay for Moby Dick references! I'm sorry if the story is getting a little repetitive. I'm not trying for that, I swear! Anyway this next arc is nice and short, so you won't have to squirm much.

Next Chapter: The Journey to Sorano begins! And what ever happened to InoShikaCho?


	14. Persistence

Side Note: I turned off the sign-a-review thing. I can't believe I didn't see that before. I'm such a dambass. Thank you, The-TempesT!

**Chapter 14: Persistence**

Tsunade brushed a blonde pig-tail out of her face and crossed off another mission assignment on her scroll. She sighed and groaned. Damn hard work. She longed to throw the mission request log into someone else's hands and laugh as they did her job for her, but everyone was assigned something. She finally felt the effects of Konoha's lost ninjas.

She placed her chin on her desk and looked at the small mirror she had placed there. All this work was taking an effect on her false, youthful beauty. She pulled at the crow's feet decorating her eyes as if she could magically rub them away.

Outside, the night covered the village like a gas mask, twinkling stars peeking through sparse clouds. Tsunade hadn't slept through such a thing in three days.

_Damn, I need someone to yell at. Where's Jiraiya when I need him?_

The obnoxious, hollow sound of a fist on the door snapped her back into her role. Tsunade tried hopelessly to straighten her hair but gave up within seconds.

"Come in." She called hoarsely.

The shadows danced around the door as the figure crept in silently. The door whispered shut as the silhouette crossed the room to her desk.

"Ah, it's good to see you." Tsunade forced a pained smile, "How are your ribs, Shikamaru?"

The boy glared through the dim light.

"Excuse me for saying so, Hokage-sama, but I didn't come here for pleasant chit-chat."

His voice commanded authority and purpose as it rang through the dully lit room.

"Good," Tsunade returned his seriousness, "because I don't have time for that. What do you want?"

Shikamaru stared for a minute into her unforgiving brown eyes. Tsunade could see his mind piecing together the right words.

"Hokage-sama, are you...sure... that Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura are dead?"

Tsunade twitched. His deductive reasoning had never failed to amaze her. This was, in fact, the same question that had haunted her thoughts since the Sound Fortress damage report. But Shikamaru didn't know what she knew. He didn't know the only thing buried was bloody clothes. What exactly did he know?

"Why?"

Shikamaru put his hand over his rib, looked away for a moment, then back again.

"There was something about those people we fought."

Tsunade sighed.

"Shikamaru, I don't have all night. If you have something to tell me, spit it out."

"The people we fought against, they fought like _them_."

Tsunade toyed with a pen, flicking it around between her fingers.

"Yeah...?" She muttered nonchalantly.

"The one I fought against could use the Kage Bunshin no Justu."

Tsunade yawned.

"A lot of people can use the Kage Bunshin no Justu, Shikamaru."

"But at that age-?"

"He could've learned it from anyone. Shikamaru, you're wasting my time."

"Wait, I'm not done." His voice rose as he struggled against time. "They knew all our moves, exactly how to defeat them."

"Aoba," the jounin appeared at the door, "please remove Shikamaru from my office and take him back to the hospital. I don't think he's had enough rest."

Aoba stepped forward and put a hand on Shikamaru's shoulder, which the boy flung off.

"H-hey!" Aoba exclaimed, but Shikamaru didn't even look. He stepped forward and slammed both his hands down on to the desk. It vibrated beneath his weight; Tsunade's mirror fell over.

"The girl had your super strength!" He yelled with all his power.

Tsunade blinked. The pen stopped twitching in her hand.

"Don't speak to the Hoka-" Tsunade silenced Aoba by lifting her hand.

"What?" Tsunade froze as though any movement would rub away his last words.

Panting, Shikamaru leaned off her table.

"That's how I it broke my ribs. While we were fighting, Chouji attempted to crush her with his Multi-Size Technique. Not only was she strong enough to survive the attack, she also was able to lift Chouji and throw him. She threw Chouji at me and, luckily, Chouji returned to his normal size before we collided or I would've had a larger injury."

Somewhere, deep inside her chest, Tsunade's heart thudded like a drum. A girl who could lift and throw Multi-Sized Chouji; few people could carry him when he was normal sized. Could it be...?

Tsunade flinched and chuckled.

"Shikamaru, do you think that if you were fighting Sakura, you would've come out with only a few cracked ribs? That girl has my strength, Shikamaru. She can bench press Choumaru in Multi-Size. If you had been fighting her, you would be within inches of your life, even if you managed to survive."

"But-" Shikamaru stuttered.

"Seeing your dead friends in other people is a perfectly normal part of conquering grief. I'm sure they were just regular ninja." She consoled softly. "Go home and get some rest. I have a mission for you tomorrow morning."

Shikamaru's face fell. He looked worn.

"Whatever." He gave in.

"Aoba, please make sure he gets home safely."

"Yes Ma'am." Aoba bowed and escorted Shikamaru out of the room.

Tsunade watched the door slide closed. She glared at it, thinking hard.

She'd lied. Sakura would never have tried and killed Shikamaru; she valued her friends too much. As her Medic-Sensei, Tsunade understood this more than anyone.

If Sakura was forced to fight a friend, she would do exactly what this mysterious girl had done: hurt them just enough to knock them out.

Tsunade pulled open a drawer in her desk, pulled out a scrap of paper and scribbled a message on it. Next, she set the pen down and folded the scrap into a bite-sized square. She stood and turned to the balcony, she yanked back to sliding glass door. A blast of summer night breeze attacked her face like a lover. It invaded her office, sending stray papers scattering to the back of the room. It tossed her shaggy hair, combing it back as she gently stepped outside.

The village glowed like a swarm of fireflies. A few dark figures leapt across the roof tops, a few leaves tripped their way across the barren streets, but all else was still.

Tsunade extended her arm and snapped her fingers. The sound rang through the silence of the night. Instantly, a sparrow fluttered down onto her out stretched finger, its prickly talons tickled his mid-digits.

Tsunade held the little note up to the bird, which clasped it tightly in its beak. She pulled the small creature close to her face and whispered delicately to it. The sparrow fidgeted restlessly and with one might thrust Tsunade tossed the bird back into the air. It fluttered before catching the wind and glided off into the east.

Tsunade stared grimly at the night as the note disappeared into the moon.

_Kakashi - Begin your search on Sea Breeze Island._

-

"You idiot!"

Sasuke casually dodged a stick as it whizzed by his head and impaled a tree.

"Sakura-chan!"

"Back off, Naruto. I'm going to kill him!"

A rock soared dangerously close to Sasuke's scalp before taking a chunk out of a tree.

Their camp site laid it ruins under their feet as Sakura stormed around.

"Sasuke!" She shook her fist menacingly. Naruto clung to her arm, but couldn't stop her; she dragged him roughly across the earthen ground.

"What the hell were you thinking, giving out your real name?" Sakura screeched. "What's wrong with you?!"

Sasuke shrugged.

"I don't see anything wrong with it." He said nonchalantly.

"'don't see anything wrong with it'..." Sakura sank to the ground, Naruto tumbling down next to her. "Sasuke, after all the trouble we've been through..."

"Sakura, we're heading to Lightning Country. Since their attack on the Hyuuga Clan, Fire Country law forbids anyone from crossing its border. The Hokage wouldn't risk a war just to come look for us."

"What about Orochimaru then?"

"Sakura, you worry too much."

Sakura stood up and moved closer to Sasuke.

"And you don't worry enough."

Suddenly he realized just how close she was: too close. She moved easily inside his arm span, her face drawing closer to his.

_Hold on, she's going to kiss me? Here!? In front of Naruto? Just like that?!_

"W-wait!" Naruto exclaimed

Sasuke gulped. He blushed and blushed deeper knowing that she could see him blushing. She moved closer. Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut. He could feel her breath on his lips, her nose brush against his, and then her forehead land with a gentle bump against his. He cautiously opened one eye. She was so close; mere centimeters separated him from taking their relationship to the next level.

Her eyes swayed in and out of focus before his. She wasn't just staring into his eyes, he felt like she was looking directly at his soul, seeing all his imperfections one at a time. The hidden side he had lost when he became an avenger suddenly seemed like the only side he had. It was underdeveloped and embarrassing.

Sasuke's face burned and seriously considered for a moment that she had thrust her hand beneath his chest, ripped his heart out and now held it in a firm grasp for all to see. He hated this. In seconds, he had lost all his security, all his outer layers, and was transformed into the person he really was and couldn't be.

"Are you okay?" She whispered. The words tickled his lips. His mind drew a blank.

"Uh-huh." He gasped. His throat felt hot; it was hard to breathe.

"You're being oddly reckless. You're acting like Naruto."

Sasuke barely heard Naruto yell in protest. He felt too exposed. He wanted desperately to run away and hide under something. This notion shocked him. Since when was he one to run away.

He couldn't respond.

Sakura smiled evilly and turned away.

"Fine, but Naruto and I are using fake names again." She walked casually out of the clearing to fish for dinner.

Naruto collapsed on the ground. What a close call. He'd thought Sakura was actually going to kiss Sasuke that time.

Sasuke fell back against a tree, slid to the ground and hugged his knees. His heart beat violently inside his chest and he tried to cool his face down.

He cursed outwardly.

Naruto looked up at Sasuke's fetal form and laughed.

"Shut up." Sasuke looked away, his face starting to cool down.

"She really got you good." Naruto grinned.

"I think I'd rather have her kill me." Sasuke let go of his knees and pouted. "Stupid 'Dance of the Forbidden Lovers.'"

* * *

Author's Note: Just to let you know, this isn't a SasuSaku fic. The only pairings decided so far don't involve our heros. Mwahahaha, I was just getting Sasuke back because he's being an ass in the manga. I'm so evil.

I'm sorry if anyone seems out of character. I tried really hard not to change them that much, but keep in mind the situations they're in, because it effects how they act.

Way to go, Bassclef! I named him Takkun as a direct FLCL reference! Brownie points for you. I've made allusions to various other manga/works of literature as well (lol, can you find them? Where's Waldo?). I think it makes the story interesting.

About Naruto's Whiskers: Mike brought up an interesting point. How are Naruto's whiskers hidden? Good question! They're not. Naruto's whiskers are there just as blatantly as reality in the morning. In the first arc, Tazuna saw them, but didn't think much of them. Inari pulled a little bit of advanced pyshocogy. A recent study published took a large group of people, made them watch a basketball game and asked them to count how many times the ball bounced. During the game, a man in a gorilla suit ran across the court. At the end, most of the people didn't remember seeing the gorilla. A similar situation happened with Inari. Besides, Naruto was avoiding Inari for most of the section, so he had very little time to make that connection. It was a bit more difficult with InoShikaCho, but if you read closely you can see none of them actually get a good look at Naruto. When they first meet, Sakura steps on Naruto's toe and he huddles in a corner throughout the meeting. When they meet at the Ramen place, Sasuke sits between Naruto and Shikamaru, blocking Shikamaru's view. Team 10 didn't even notice them during the pageant and, for the battle, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura wore Kakashi-style masks. But rest assured! Naruto will need a better disguise when they bump into people who will look for and notice these things. Oh crap, have I given away too much!?

Ok, I'm done now...


	15. Haplessness

Note: I know nothing about boats.... NOTHING!

**Chapter 15: Haplessness**

"Oi, Sasuke-kun! C'mere a second." Yoshitaka called down to the lower deck from the ship's bow.

Naruto grumbled and pushed a mop over the boat's gleaming exterior. The sun flared over head like a spotlight, making the chipped, white surface blinding. Despite the occasional costal breeze that brushed by him every so often, Naruto was dotted with sweat. Sakura set down a pail of water for him and he haphazardly shoved the mop into it, spraying dirty water over the glimmering paneling.

He glared as Sasuke answered Yoshitaka's summons.

"This is the harpoon launcher." Yoshitaka put a hand on a large contraption plastered to the front of the boat. "I'm going to be steering, so you'll man it for the remainder of the voyage. You load it like this..." Yoshitaka pulled a level to the side and down, shoved a harpoon into the barrel, and pulled the lever back up again."... then you aim and fire pressing these buttons. You can shoot ten times without reloading." Sasuke nodded in understanding "You need to be careful and alert. Shoot all the sharks that come within 2 meters of the boat. I'll tell you when we reach their territory."

"Excuse me, Yoshitaka-san." Sakura looked up from scrubbing a rail. "I never knew sharks were aggressive enough to attack a ship."

Yoshitaka jumped down to the lower deck where Sakura and Naruto were working.

"Normal sharks aren't, but these aren't normal sharks." He explained. "These were raised and trained by a prominent, Hidden Mist, advanced bloodline clan. The Hoshigaki clan. Unfortunately, they were nearly wiped out in the Ninja Wars. With no masters, these 'Super Sharks' left the Hidden Mist and created their own territory out here in the sea."

"I see." Sakura replied. "But then, why haven't the clan's survivors rounded them up?"

"Surviv_or_. There was only one. He was a promising Mist Ninja, but he disappeared over seven years ago. Don't you worry, cutie." Yoshitaka leaned toward Sakura and winked. "I'll protect you from the sharks."

The metal pail ricocheted off Yoshitaka's head, covering him in dirty, brown water.

"Ow! What the-?"

"Stop flirting with her, you perverted old man!" Naruto blared.

"Who're you calling an old man!? I'm 25!"

"That's still too old to be flirting with her!"

"You little brat!" Yoshitaka raised the empty bucket to throw it at Naruto but Sakura grabbed his hand.

"Yoshitaka-san! Please don't hurt him." She begged.

Yoshitaka look at her out of the corner of his eye and sighed, lowering the pail.

"You better thank your cute little friend here. Cause I would've beat the crap out of you."

_I'd like to see you try_, Naruto hissed to himself.

Yoshitaka turned back to the front of the ship and climbed the stairs to the landing.

"Get back to work, Swabby. We'll be leaving in a couple hours. I want to be able to eat off that deck."

Naruto ground his teeth and resisted the urge to impale the man with his mop. Sakura moved closer to him.

"Are you okay, Naruto?" She asked concernedly.

"I'm fine!" He growled, but she knew better. Sakura sighed as Naruto recklessly swung the mop around.

-

The boat set off at 6pm sharp. The bright, sultry sun shifted lazily above a sea of a similar color, as though trying to decide whether to set or not. Sakura knew it wouldn't go down for another hour. Days were getting longer; the still quiet of the night was getting louder. Spring was almost over and the warm summer nights had oozed into the hemisphere.

The grumbling of the boat's jittered Sakura's nerves as she looked out into the indecisive sun. It winked behind the masts of boats as Yoshitaka steered them out of the harbor.

Naruto and Sasuke stood on either side of her, each in his own silence, Sasuke's nostalgic and Naruto's irritated. Once they had left the harbor and gone out to open sea, Yoshitaka hollered down from the helm.

"Sakura-chan! Would you go fix dinner?"

Sakura brushed a flimsy strand of hair out of her face.

"Okay!" She moved off toward the kitchen.

"Wait." Sasuke called from behind her. "I'll help. Naruto?"

The blonde's black hair tossed in the wind.

"I'm fine out here!" He snapped.

Sakura and Sasuke exchanged looks.

"Okay then." Sasuke answered and followed Sakura into the galley.

A gust snipped at the ends of Naruto's yellow shirt. Even with the summer weather, the ocean breeze was still a bit frigid. He huddled against the wind and cursed inwardly.

_Stupid Yoshitaka-jisan! How come Sasuke gets to shoot the sharks while I have to scrub the stupid ship!? I'm just as good as he is! It's always Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke! All because that idiot showed off. I could've hit that "A" twice as good as him! A hundred times as good!... Okay, so maybe not. Sasuke is the best sniper. But that doesn't make him better than me! Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

Naruto sighed and looked over the railing into the water. The sea was too unstable for him to see his reflection, but he knew it was there, under all that white surf and black abyss. Salty sea spray spattered his face and he leaned back. His stomach grumbled unpleasantly, but his pride grumbled louder.

In front of him, the sun made up its mind and sank into the rumbling, indigo sea. The moon took over, spreading its vibrant rays across the night's sky. It painted the universe a deep blue, including the wind. Naruto shivered against it and felt something warm drape around his shoulders, something warmer press against his right arm. He turned his head to look.

"Sakura-chan."

"Hi." She whispered. She had thrown a large, puffy jacket over the both of them to shield against the cold. Her warmth came like a candle in the darkness. "Hungry?"

She handed him a cup full of hot soup. Naruto pushed his arm through one of the jacket's sleeves and accepted the token. His numb fingers sizzled against the Styrofoam.

_How does she always know...?_ Naruto smiled spitefully at her.

"Thank you."

He put the cup to his lips and drank down the chowder. It heated his chest and thawed his stomach. He let out a breath and it came out in stream.

Sakura gently put her cold cheek against his. It was soft like a silk pillow. Naruto's whole face heated like a furnace.

_Waaah! She's so cute!_

"S-sakura-chan?"

"Why don't you tell me what's wrong."

Naruto twitched.

_Seriously. How does she know!? Is she stalking me?!_

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't lie. You've been acting prickly since yesterday." She reached around and zipped up the jacket, trapping them both inside.

"This isn't that 'Forbidden Lovers' pshyco-thingy, is it?"

"Stupid. I know that technique doesn't work on you anymore. So, what's wrong? It has to do with Yoshitaka-san and Sasuke, doesn't it?"

_She_ is _stalking me!_

Naruto sighed and looked out over the water.

"What wrong with me, Sakura-chan? Why don't people take me seriously, like they do with Sasuke? Everyone's always impressed with him. They always like him best."

Naruto looked sadly out onto the moonlit water. He could feel Sakura smile.

"Is that what you think?" She whispered. "That everyone likes Sasuke best?"

"Well, isn't it obvious? I mean, he was always the most popular. Lee, Neji, Shikamaru, everyone, they all looked up to him from the beginning. Even you."

"That was a long time ago, Naruto."

"But this Yoshitaka guy-"

"Naruto, sure, Sasuke comes off as very mature and controlled, and this is shown even more when he's next to you, a loudmouth brat. But those are just first impressions, Naruto, they don't mean a thing. All those people, Lee, Neji, Shikamaru, they all have a higher respect for you. In fact, they all respect you more than Sasuke. Yoshitaka-san doesn't know you like we know you."

Naruto gave her a sideways glance.

"You mean it? You're not just lying to make me feel better?"

"Stupid, real friends don't lie to each other."

Naruto's face dropped.

"Then you meant it when you said you hated me?"

"Eh? When'd I say that?"

"When we first became a team."

"Stupid, that was a long time ago. I didn't know you back then, like Yoshitaka-san doesn't know you now. Of course, now you're one of my best friends." She squeezed him tightly. "And that's the truth."

"So, if I worked all day over a stove and made some really bad ramen, you'd tell me it was bad?"

"Yeah, but I'd eat it anyway."

"Really?" Naruto looked at the cup in his hand. "In that case... this soup is nasty." He put the cup to his lips and poured more down his throat.

Sakura was struck with shock.

"Eh?! Are you serious!?"

"Oh yeah." Naruto finished it off. "The ramen on Biscuit Island tasted better than this. I was going to wait for you to leave, and then dump it overboard"

Sakura puffed her cheeks and looked away.

"That's mean!"

"But it's the truth." He held up his empty cup. "May I have more?"

Sakura looked back at him. He could see her face turn pink as she smiled.

Sakura ducked under the jacket, slipped out of it and took his cup.

"You don't have to eat it if you don't like it." She grumbled.

"But I'm hungry!" He called at her back

Sadly, he watched her walk away. He placed a hand over the seal on his navel, over Kyuubi, and his heart throbbed.

_I'm sorry Sakura-chan. I lie to you everyday_.

-

Something must have been wrong with the temperature, because the next morning was hotter than Harem no Jutsu. Naruto peeled his mesh undershirt off and dumped his dirty water bucket over his head.

"Eww..." Sakura winced as the grimy water dripped down his bare back.

"What?" He glared playfully at her.

"Nothing." Sakura pulled her white mesh top over her head. Naruto gawked; it was the kind of thing you only saw in movies. Her arms stretched the white mesh up over her head, but it caught on her red halter. The two layers rose together, over the hips her shorts did little to hide, her tight, flat stomach, her bellybutton, and up to her rib cage, where the thin rows were barely visible. The red halter stopped frustratingly close to her breasts and for a moment, Naruto thought he saw a glimpse of a white bra. Sakura yanked the white shirt through her hair and swished the black/pinkish locks before tossing the discarded shirt into a heap. She pulled the red halter shirt back down around her waist before noticing Naruto's slacking jaw.

"What?" She looked at him askew.

Naruto snapped out of his trance.

"N-nothing!" He silently thanked his lucky stars he could travel with such a girl. He recalled their conversation the night before and how she snuggled her cheek against his.

_I am the luckiest guy in the world!_

"Oi, swabby!" Yoshitaka's nagging ripped him out of his fantasy.

"Don't call me 'swabby'!" Naruto snapped.

"Whatever. Stop ogling and get back to work!"

Naruto grumbled and grabbed his mop.

The sun flared overhead like a sunlamp. Sasuke, kicking back in a chair before the harpoon launcher, his shirts and shoes discarded, reclined lazily against the salty scent of the sea. He propped his feet up on the launcher and watched the water for "super sharks". Nothing. Sasuke stared down his nose at the water; half an hour into shark territory and not even a slimy gray fin could be spotted in the deep blue. The water lashed the side of the boat lifeless. Sweat beaded down the side of Sasuke's face.

Almost as sudden as a mood swing, Naruto felt jittery and alive. The hairs on the back of his neck prickled like a cactus. His skin tingled. The slight noise of Sakura folding her shirt behind him made him jump.

_What the hell is wrong with me?_ Naruto put an exasperated hand on his sweat covered forehead.

Something huge lashed against the boat's right side. The ship buckled violently. Sasuke gripped his seat keep from falling off. He heard Sakura cry out as she hit the railing, Yoshitaka grunt from the other side of the boat, and a loud splash as Naruto tumbled into the water.

The boat rocked and evened out on the water. Sakura threw herself at the railing.

"Naruto!" she screamed at the water. He was nowhere amongst the waves. She searched the black and white brine frantically. She cursed her eyes. He was there! She just couldn't see him!

_Damn it, Naruto! Come back up!_ Her mind raced. She could feel her heart lodge itself in her throat, thumping like an earthquake.

Naruto burst through the water like blood from a wound gasping for breath.

"Idiot!" Sakura snapped as her heart settled back into her chest. "I thought a shark had eaten you!"

Naruto laughed sheepishly.

"Give me your hand." Sakura reached her arm down to him.

Naruto did as she said and extended his left arm upward.

"Sakura!" Sasuke hollered from the upper deck.

"Huh?" Sakura turned to see her companion glaring fearfully. Sasuke's dark eyes lit up with horror as he looked at her.

_What? What did I do?_

She was wrong. His intense stare wasn't fixed on her. She followed his gaze back to the water, in time to see Naruto splash back beneath the waves. He disappeared again into the endless blue.

"C'mon Naruto, stop playing games." Sakura craned over the rail, but stopped short.

The dark, indigo waves began to turn a crimson red.

* * *

Author's Notes: ahhh... Jaw's references. How... cliche...:sighs: You guys don't honestly think that's a cliffhanger, do you? I would also like to point out for all the SasuSaku fans out there, while I, personally, am a die hard NaruSaku fan, this isn't a NaruSaku fic either. The fic was planned in a state of non-bias. 

I'm overjoyed by the ammount of feedback I got on the last chapter. Twice as many reviews as the once before it! Looks like Naruto Unlimited is getting popular. You guys have no idea what that does to my self-esteem. :) Thank you readers!

About Sakura "Stalking" Naruto: Sakura isn't stalking him (lol, that's Hinata's job :P ), but you could probably figure that out, so why am I writing this? While I was going over the manga before I started this fic, I came across an idea that would be really cool. I figured that each of the three had their own "sixth-sense", something they had in common but different variations of (All the other Teams have something like this, but I couldn't find it in Team 7, so I came up with this.) Sasuke has a warrior's sense, Naruto has animal instinct and Sakura has a woman's intuition. Make sense? I tried to show that in previous chapters, but I don't think it came across as well as it should have. If you noticed it before this side note: CONGRADULATIONS! You're a genius! If you didn't: CONGRADULATIONS! You're just as intellegent as me.... btw, This chapter showed both Sakura's intuition and Naruto's instinct.

About the end: I have recieved several comments regarding the end of Naruto Unlimited. Yes, there is an end! like I've said before, this fic is not sponatneous. Everything (or most of it, at least) I'm writing now has some impact on either a large battle or the ending battle itself. In fact, I wrote the ending before I even wrote the beginning. This whole "middle" is being written for the sole purpose of making the ending impactful. But fear not! We have a long way to go before we get there. ;)

Next Chapter: What is it?! Kyuubi's seal shines through as our heros reach Sorano!


	16. Reverence

**Chapter 16: Reverence**

Pain tore through Naruto's arm as her watched water separate him and Sakura. He at his attack as the cold water brushed over his sun-heated skin like a breathless wind. The slick, gray shark was nearly 10 times his size, its sharp yellow teeth tearing through Naruto's right forearm. He tried to yell in pain but his voice came out in bubbles and half his air supply. Dark blood pooled into thick clouds before him.

_Stupid shark! Get the hell off me!_

Naruto tried to yank his arm from the shark's teeth. White hot pain burst into thicker, red clouds in the salty water. Naruto choked; his lungs squeezed. He didn't have much time before he died of suffocation, pain or blood loss.

_Fuck you, stupid fish! You've chosen the wrong guy to mess with! I've been eaten by things ten times your size, like hell I'm going to die now!_

Through the searing pain, Naruto focused on his right hand, lodged inside the shark's mouth. His chakra thickened and began to swirl around his palm.

_RASENGAN!_

-

"Naruto!" Sakura grabbed the railing and made to leap over it.

"No, Sakura!" Sasuke yelled down at her. "It'll eat you too!"

"But we can't just stand here!"

"Move!"

Sasuke swiveled the harpoon launcher and aimed down at the water. He could see it, the large, long silhouette flailing just beneath the surface. If he could aim just right...

The spine-tingling feel of chakra radiated from the huge, shadowy creature. A small whirlpool turned on the water's surface, then stopped as abruptly as it began. For a moment, there was still silence. Not even the water dared to breathe.

The ocean exploded. A cocktail of salt water and blood erupted into the air like broken glass, the boat violently thrown to the side. Sakura clung to the rail the salty, blood chunky water rained down upon her.

_Chunky?_

White hunks of fish meat hailed down upon the boat. Sakura leaned over the edge again.

"Naruto?"

The boy resurfaced, panting painfully. Sakura reached down and he handed her his left hand. She cautiously dragged him out of the water and, to her disgust, noticed the gruesome dismembered head of the shark still clamped firmly around his right arm.

"Think fast, Sasuke!" Yoshitaka cried. Sasuke noticed the dark shapes, by the hundreds, moving quickly in their direction.

"So many?!"

"It's the blood." Yoshitaka flipped a button cover, marked "Emergency", next to the controls, revealing a small key hole. "Sharks can smell it over a mile away. It attracts them like a perv to cheap perfume." He pulled a key off the string around his neck, shoved it in and turned it. "Now hold on tight. I'm getting us out of here." The engine roared beneath them.

Sakura dragged Naruto and his catch across the deck, set the down and proceeded to remove the shark's jaw from her friend. With one quick movement, she tore through the shark's muscles, breaking the upper jaw from the lower and tossing each piece somewhere obscure.

Sakura bent to get a closer look at Naruto's injury, when she noticed something odd. At first, she thought the marks were more injuries, but they were too symmetrical, too perfect. Curly, black marks encompassed Naruto's navel, a central spiral as a hub surrounded by a bizarre ring of writing. She'd seen this writing somewhere before... Sakura reached out to touch it, maybe the black would rub off, but the insignia receded back into Naruto's skin, as though it had a mind of her own. This type of movement, symbols receding into the flesh, she'd see it before as well, on Sasuke. This was a seal...but what for?

Naruto cried out in pain.

"It burns!" He gripped his arm, cringing in pain. Sakura snapped back to the present.

"It's the salt water." She replied, lifting him to his feet. "We'd better clean it out."

She half carried, half dragged him into the small galley, set him down at the wooden picnic table and put his arm over a large mixing bowl.

She turned the wound over and watched the blood drip into the bowl. The shark had torn through some muscle but all the major veins were intact. The only lethal aspects lay in infection. With the combine bacteria from the ocean and the shark's mouth, there had to be something disgusting crawling around it there.

"Hang tight, Naruto. I'll be right back."

Sakura dashed down the hall to the sleeping quarters, grabbed her backpack and darted back into the galley. She sat down next to Naruto and pulled out cotton balls and a bottle of peroxide.

_A little primitive, I guess,_ She thought as she twisted the cap off the peroxide, stuck a cotton ball on the top and turned the bottle upside down, _What I wouldn't give for the Konoha Hospital's facilities right now..._

"Naruto, this is going to sting a bit."

He nodded breathlessly. He looked a little sick and pale.

_Blood loss..._

Sakura pressed the cotton swab to the blood encrusted regions of Naruto's arm. She felt his muscles tense up. She secretly stole a peek at Naruto's abdominals. Nothing. The marks were completely gone. What kind of seal could do that...?

Sakura knew a little about seals; they fit themselves into a lot of Medic Jutsu. She'd learned a ton during her part in getting rid of Sasuke's curse too. What was it Jiraiya said?

"_Now look, Sakura-chan, seals come in different levels and forms, like jutsus. You start with your basic seal components, bird seals and mouse seals being the easiest, and fit them together in the best ways possible. That, of course, is where the real genius comes into play, knowing which and how many seals to use. This seal..." He pointed at Sasuke's neck, "... appears to be made out of three basic components, but as we have seen, it's a lot more than that; it actually made up of hundreds. Seals that contract, like this one, are the best and most difficult. They also last the longest. They're designed to be tapped into, so they're user isn't constantly putting out excess power._

"_Each seal is made up of seal components, like bird and mouse as I have mentioned, and these components in turn are made up of long strings of encryptions tied together in their simplest form. There are many kinds of these components, the largest and strongest being a dragon seal, but the energy required to place one would wear out 10 jounin, so it's rarely used. The largest seal component one person can perform is the elephant seal..."_

A flame of understanding lit in the back of Sakura's mind.

_An elephant seal! That's where I've seen those marks before! What else did Jiraiya say about them...?_

"..._and depending on how strong you are you can use this multiple times. In fact, you should. A seal made up of only one of each type of seal component can be very instable. It's better to go with two or three of something smaller than one of something large, but not more than that. Four is really pushing it."_

"_But Jiraiya-sama, Sasuke has hundreds!"_ She remembered exclaiming.

"_Yeah, but those seals are relatively weak in comparison to a broader scope, so you can use a lot of them without much backlash."_

"_Backlash?"_

"_Seals are like equations. They need to balance out. The stronger the seal the higher the price you must pay. Most seals are covered just by the blood you use to draw them, but sometimes... they take a little more..." Jiraiya stopped; his face softened, his eyes saw something in a distant past. He became shaded with the curse of nostalgia._

"_Jiraiya-sama?"_

"_Huh?"_

"_You were saying...?"_

"_What? Oh, Never mind! Let's just get this crap off Sasuke!"_

"_H-hai!"_

So what could she say about it? It had at least four elephant seals; whoever sealed it would've had to be beyond genius. Could Naruto do that? Was it a bad idea to think he couldn't? One thing was for sure, something powerful rested inside of that seal. What Akatsuki was after? That power Sakura'd felt in Sea Breeze? She couldn't afford to jump to conclusions.

"S-sakura-chan?"

Sakura glanced up. Naruto was looking at her, worry drawn across his brow.

_She's so serious..._

"I-it's not deadly, is it?"

Sakura blinked a few times before bursting out laughing.

"No, you'll be fine."

Naruto let out a sigh of relief.

Sakura returned to her cleaning, but stopped. Her eyes glared down at his arm.

Naruto's wound had completely healed.

-

Outside, Sasuke battled recklessly with the sharks. He'd never expected it to be so difficult. With the boat now going three times faster, he had little time to react.

A mammoth beast leapt out of the water in front of him, massive jaws barred. Sasuke wheeled the launcher and shot a harpoon right through the shark's nose. He blinked as flecks of blood spattered his face and the shark rebounded off the hull and back down into the water. A dark shape whizzed by on the right. Sasuke shot at it, but didn't have time to see if he'd hit; another dark shape approached at his left.

_This is insane; we're going too fast._ He thought as he pierced the shark's dorsal fin_. I can't keep up._

Sasuke took a breath and closed his eyes. His veins pulsed with his bloodline.

_SHARINGAN!_

Sasuke's eyes shot open. The world seemed predictable. A shark was going to appear on his right again. He could see it before the large shadow swept the boats side. The creature moved just as Sasuke expected. He swiftly aimed the launcher and shot the beast sharply in the head.

Yoshitaka's brow furrowed. What was he seeing? Sasuke's impeccable aim had gotten, if possible, better. In fact, it looked like the sharks were jumping into the harpoons, like dogs to a bone. Yoshitaka recalled the other boy. In all his long years as a sailor, he'd never met anyone who had defeated a shark one-on-one. Only a handful of people had survived an attack, and somehow, this loudmouth brat had not only done that but completely destroyed the shark. Who were these children...? Yoshitaka could only imagine what kinds of abilities the girl had.

_5... 4..._ Sasuke counted the remaining harpoons. The sharks had calmed down; they weren't following them closely anymore. He let his eyes fade back to normal and shook his head against the weary nausea that normal followed the use of his abilities.

Yoshitaka pulled the key out and let the boat return to it's leisurely pace.

-

Unaware of the Gates of Hell he'd just opened, Naruto had the best afternoon. Yoshitaka gave him the rest of the day off to recover (Sakura had bandaged Naruto's healed arm anyway. Not because she was in denial, but to thwart any suspicions anyone else might have.), so he sat on a bench, taste-testing Sakura's soup (which was getting radically better) and laughing at Sasuke as his friend pushed the mop over the buffet of salt water, blood and shark chunks that littered the deck.

_Who's the better one now!?_

The afternoon sank quickly into the dark dusk. The vibrant, stellar technicolor transformed into a deep blue, a complete mirror of the sea below it.

"Oi, we're ahead of schedule!" Yoshitaka hollered down to them. "Come look at this."

Sasuke set down the mop and joined Naruto and Sakura as they climbed to the landing at the front of the ship. They squeezed around the harpoon launcher and stared out over the railing. A large dark strip was growing larger in the distance, a single bright star along the horizon marked Sorano. The wind whipped the trio's hair and clothes and tickled their faces.

"Waaaaaaa!" Naruto hollered playfully over the water as they bounced up and down on the waves. Sasuke smiled, then looked to his left where Sakura stood. Her nose and cheeks grew pink against the ocean breeze. She watched the speck of light but her mind was in another place altogether.

"Sakura...?" Sasuke muttered. She jumped a little.

"Y-yes?"

"You've been quiet since you fished me out of the water." Naruto piped up.

Sakura smiled sheepishly. Sasuke looked sadly out on to the water.

"Are... you still angry at me for using my real name?"

Sakura blinked. She'd been so concerned with Naruto's stomach, she'd forgotten to be.

Sasuke gripped the railing and leaned his hips back.

"To be honest," He continued, "I want Orochimaru to come after us."

His comrades threw him insane stares

"WHAT!?" Naruto cried.

"Well, Orochimaru is the main reason we left Konoha, right?" Sasuke sadly looked out at the star growing larger on the horizon.

"I get it." Sakura sighed. "If he comes after us, we can defeat him and go home, that's what you're getting at."

Sasuke smiled crookedly.

"Well, I know how much you guys miss Fire Country. Sakura, that song you sang in Sea Breeze said it all and Naruto hasn't liked a single bowl of ramen since we left. I know you both want to go back."

"But what about you, Sasuke?" Naruto pointed out. "Don't you miss Konoha too?"

Sasuke smiled sluggishly and blushed. Naruto burst out laughing.

"Ha, ha! You just like a clam, Sasuke."

"A cl-clam?!"

"Yeah, y'know, all rock solid on the outside but mushy on the inside." Naruto punched Sasuke arm playfully; Sasuke grumbled. "Right Sakura-chan?"

No answer.

"Sakura-chan!"

"Huh?" Sakura looked up.

"Man, you're spacey today!"

"Are you sure you're okay, Sakura?" Sasuke asked.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine." Sakura mumbled. "What were you saying?"

"I was saying how Sasuke is like a clam." Naruto chuckled. Sasuke grumbled again and Sakura laughed.

"He is kind of clammy." Sakura looked Sasuke over. "But I'm afraid you're wrong Naruto."

"Eh?" Naruto was shocked, Sasuke threw him a smug look.

"Yeah, he's a crab."

Naruto burst out laughing.

"What?! How?" Sasuke pouted at her.

"You've got pinchers." Sakura smiled sweetly, grabbed Sasuke's arm and poked his cheek. "Besides, crabs are tastier than clams."

Sasuke blushed.

The city swelled up through the cyan/indigo light, a beautiful painted night sky with all the lights sparkled amongst the buildings. The town reflected upon the glimmering water, radiating with the luminosity of a child's fairytale. Silently, the boat and its passengers snuck into the harbor.

* * *

Author's Note: Yay for chapter 16! I would like to extend a hug out to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. A record number of reviews! I feel so loved... :). I hope this chapter lived up to your expectations, I know a lot of people had big plans for it that probably didn't come true. 

Yes, Sasuke's Curse Seal is gone! There's a little story behind it, but I didn't think it was important enough to include and I think I gave enough detail about its destruction in this chapter, so don't expect too much more on that level.

"Forbiden Lovers" on Naruto: I'm surprised; no one asked me about why the "Dance of the Forbiden Lovers" doesn't work on Naruto! I mentioned it last chapter, and no one called me on it. If you were curious, it has nothing to do with "Sakura secretly likes Naruto", " Sakura and Naurto are closer than Sakura and Sasuke are", or "Sakura and Naruto are making babies behind the scenes". It's really quite simple. Naruto is a very outgoing, in-your-face kind of person, combine that with the fact that he likes Sakura. Now what do you think would happen if you tried to kiss someone like that. They'd try and kiss you back! In such a situation, Sakura would pull back and the entire technique would be reversed, with Naruto on the offesive and Sakura on the defensive. That's the only reason that technique doesn't work on Naruto. Man, I need to stop with these essays... :/

Next Chapter: Welcome to Sorano! A strange old woman? A bizarre prophecy? But what about the seal?!


	17. Insight

**Chapter 17: Insight**

The town of Sorano lay embedded in forest covered hills along the Lightning Country coastline. After a final night on Yoshitaka's boat, the trio could finally see the area clearly. The town had a watercolor painting appeal to it; white paper lanterns hung crisscross over the cobble stone encrusted streets. Cherry trees, full of burgundy fruits, bordered each causeway like soldiers.

"This place must be really pretty in the spring, with all the cherry blossoms." Sakura said as she watched birds peck at a fallen cherry.

These side streets led to a bustling main market place. Traditional two-story buildings on either side held mother's yelling down to their children and store clerks sweeping their thresholds with wooden brooms. These buildings housed all kinds of shops: noisy pet stores, vibrant candy vendors, delectable-smelling restaurants, tacky souvenir stands, all kinds.

"We need to find a place to stay." Sasuke was saying as they crossed through the streets.

"But we need money too." Sakura pointed out. "Yoshitaka-san only paid us with the trip."

"That rules out a hotel." Sasuke added. "Maybe we can rent an apartment. We'll have to look for jobs again."

"It's going to be harder this time around. This country has child labor laws outside of ninja services and those are handled through the Raikage and the Hidden Cloud Ninja Registry."

"No Freelance Bureau?"

"None what-so-ever."

"Ah, I don't care." Naruto put his arms behind his head, Shodaime's necklace swinging freely over his yellow shirt. They turned down a precariously empty street. "I'm hungry. Let's eat something."

"Sure, you like cherries?" Sakura shrugged.

"What?! I want ramen!"

"No money means no ramen."

"Awww..."

They continued down the bizarrely deserted street, talking of dinner when someone called out to them.

"Children!" A hunched figure, hidden in the shadow of a draping purple cloak, sat on a light picnic blanket on the side on the cobbled street in front of a dark alleyway. The form sat behind several objects: a deck of cards, a cup of tea, and, most notably, a large crystal ball.

"I'm sorry." Sakura smiled sheepishly, holding up her arms apologetically, "We don't have any money for fortunes."

"I know that, of course." The voice was feminine but wrinkled with age. "Come closer."

The three exchanged questionable glances and cautiously approached the veiled woman.

"All three of you, put your hands on the crystal."

Naruto in the middle, flanked by Sasuke on his right and Sakura on his left, reached down and place his hand on the crystal ball's cold smooth surface. The old woman hovered her own wrinkly hands over theirs. Naruto's spine tingled.

Suddenly, an intricate seal-like design began to glow under the sphere. The crystal itself grew warm and shone like a star.

Naruto tried to pull his hand back in alarm, but he was somehow transfixed to the bizarre yellow light.

There was a flash and Team 7 fell backward onto the cobblestone street.

The woman chuckled. She waved her hands around the glass once more as the three picked themselves up and leaned in to see.

"Yes," the woman muttered, "You three have an interesting future, but you will have to get there to learn about it. While you are here in Sorano, however, many things will happen. You and you..." She pointed first to Sasuke, then Sakura. "... will both find something. And you..." She pointed at Naruto. "... will lose something precious."

Naruto gulped.

"What?" He exclaimed. "That's not fair."

"Maybe Sasuke or I will find what you lose, Naruto." Sakura suggested.

The old woman cackled.

"No possible."

"Why not?" Sakura pouted.

"Because boy..." The woman turned to Naruto. "... what you will lose is irreplaceable and will be gone forever. You..." The woman looked at Sasuke. "... You will find something of great importance, but you will not realize how important until it is far too late." She let the warning linger in the air before turning to Sakura.

"As for you, I believe you already know what you will find. But beware, because, as they say..."

The old woman looked up. Erie golden eyes fixed on Sakura from the darkness of the woman's face.

"...'Curiosity killed the cat.'"

An ominous shiver traveled down Sakura's spine. The woman's unblinking stare seeped into her self doubt. A few moments passed as the trio soaked in the premonitions.

"Sorry, lady." Sasuke stood up. "But it sounds like a load of crap to me." He began to walk away.

"Ah, Sasuke!" Sakura called, then turned to the mysterious woman and bowed.

"Th-thank you very much." She stuttered, before grabbing a sulking Naruto and running after Sasuke.

"Sasuke! Wait for us!"

-

The golden-eyed woman watched the three children leave, then leaned back slightly.

"So what do you think?"

The black alley behind her stirred. The dark silhouette of a man shifted amongst the void.

"Interesting..." He rumbled.

"That boy... He had-"

"Yes, it was most definitely _that thing_."

"Why does he have it?"

The man grinned evilly.

"You want me to find out, Kiki-chama?"

"Since when have you needed my permission?"

The man chuckled.

"Okay, I'll investigate. I have plans for this boy anyway."

"Plans? That's rare."

"Yes, there's something about him. He reminds me of _that man_."

"Do whatever you want, Ro-kun." The old woman picked up a card from the deck beside her and slashed it through the crystal ball. The translucent globe exploded into vapor.

"This is going to be an eventful couple of weeks."

-

"Here it is." A burly landlady pointed to a little flat as she handed Sasuke a ring of keys. "No idea why a bunch of kids like you would want to live around here. Oh well, if you die, it's not my problem."

_Thanks for the compassion_, Sakura muttered to herself. She had to agree with the muscular woman. In the late afternoon light, the neighborhood looked like something out of a "Save-the-Children" advertisement. Grimy, dirty streets, paved with plastic bags, NinCola cans and sewage water, ran across the pathways like road kill. Gang insignia, painted in a variety of colors and even carved in places, covered the weather-stained, once-white walls and high, broken fences of the neighborhood's residences. The whole place smelled like piss. But it was the cheapest place listed. It would be their palace while they were in Sorano.

"Let's go check it out." Sasuke swung the keys on his finger as he moved toward the apartment complex.

Sakura nodded.

"C'mon Naruto."

"Hai..." He sulked.

"Are you worried about what the fortune teller said?"

He nodded.

Sakura smiled. Could someone like this house a horrific power? Seeing him pout adorably like a four-year-old made her second guess her eyes. She had seen that seal, hadn't she? She shook her head to clear it a little. Of course she's seen it, clear as day. But what it was for still plagued her.

"Don't worry about it, Naruto." Sasuke sighed as they climbed the stairs to their flat. "Fortunes are for shit. They don't mean a damn thing. No one can see the future."

"That's awfully pessimistic, Sasuke." Sakura mumbled as they reached the first landing. "and I thought you could see the future."

"Of course I can't. Seeing the future and reading movements are different things, Sakura. What will happen, will happen; we'll deal with it when it comes to us."

Naruto stopped on the landing and grinned.

"Yeah! Screw you, future!" He cried.

"That's... not what I meant..." Sasuke sweatdropped as he scaled the last leg of stairs. He came to the door and waited for his friends to join him, before sticking the key in door knob. The door swung inward, revealing the most pathetic one-room living space they'd ever seen. Floorboards were water-stained and missing in places. The dirty walls were smeared with discoloration. A grime encrusted stove sat in a corner and a bathroom, which all were too scared to look at, behind a door on the left-hand wall.

"Uhhhh..." Naruto groaned.

"It may not be a castle, but it's ours." Sasuke sighed as they all tiptoed in.

Sakura bravely peered into the bathroom, and quickly shut the door again, wincing disgustedly.

"We're using a public bath until we get this place cleaned up." She announced.

"First things first." Sasuke put his backpack against the wall and sat in the middle of the room. "We need to get jobs."

"And we need to find this Kouji person." Sakura said as she and Naruto joined him. "But that'll be easy, so we should focus on this job thing for now."

"We need to find a way around Child Labor laws." Sasuke muttered.

"Henge no Justu?" Naruto suggested.

"I don't think any of us can hold it longer than a couple hours." Sakura said.

"What we need is to look older. Yoshitaka let us on as crewmates even though he asked for people over 18." Sasuke sighed. "If only one of us looked old enough."

He realized his teammates sat unusually still, staring at him with wide eyes.

"What?"

Naruto and Sakura grinned evilly. Sasuke was taken aback.

"W-wait a minute."

"Sasuke! It's perfect!" Sakura squealed.

"Me?! But I don't look-"

"Oh, yes you do." Naruto chuckled.

"But what about you guys?"

"Please, Sasuke. Naruto is so short he barely looks his _own_ age."

"Hey!"

"and no one's going to believe I'm 18; my chest hasn't grown out enough."

Naruto and Sasuke turned bright red.

Sakura blushed and rubbed the back of her neck.

"... but I guess you didn't need to know that. C'mon Sasuke! It doesn't have to be a big job; it won't take much to afford this place. And Naruto and I will look for Kouji. Don't be such a crab!"

Sasuke grumbled.

"Whatever."

"Alright!" Naruto and Sakura cheered.

"But I really don't think I look 18."

"Hmmm..." Sakura stood up. "I can fix that. Here, stand up." Sasuke did as Sakura walked over to her backpack and pulled out bandage wrap. She walked over to Sasuke and roughly pulled his hair back.

"Ow!"

"Just one second." She ripped a piece of bandage off with her teeth and tied Sasuke's hair into a tiny ponytail at the base of his neck.

"There." Sakura stood back. "That should help. You'll still have to pass as a young looking 18 year-old though."

Naruto nodded and yawned.

"We'd better get some sleep." Sakura stretched. "We've got a big day tomorrow."

-

"So... You're name is Aoi?" A burly, felon-looking man glared at Sasuke over the bar.

"Yeah." Sasuke felt a little self-conscious, like a hundred eyes were watching him.

"_It's probably best to work at some place a little shady." Sakura had suggested. "You'll attract less attention."_

Sasuke sighed. _Is that why I'm in a bar?_ He'd been in a bar several times before; a couple times looking for various people with Kakashi-sensei during his probation (when he wasn't allowed out of the village) and one painful time when he tried to stop a drunken Lee from destroying the establishment. (Bad idea, very bad idea.), but this place was a little different than the others. It was full of what looked like a prison break, huge, chunky men shook the place and it was clear you had to be tough to get over the threshold. From what he could tell, most of them were travelers, merchants who stopped here for a beer and to give and take news of the outside world. Sasuke had been attracted by the Help Wanted sign in the dusty window; only a few blocks from their dingy apartment, it seemed like the perfect work enterprise.

"You look kind of young. How old are you?" the proprietor pried.

"18"

The rough'n'tough man looked Sasuke over suspiciously.

"You look kind of wimpy. I don't think you'd fit well in a place like this."

"Oh give him a break, Kujoh." A rather scantily clad waitress whispered in a husky voice as she passed by carrying pints and entrees. She set a steak down next to Sasuke's left hand neighbor. "I think he's cute." She winked at Sasuke, who tried hard not to blush, but could feel his face burn anyway.

"Wimpy huh?" Sasuke shook off his embarrassment and put his right arm upright on the table.

"You want to arm wrestle me? Well, you've got guts, kid; I'll give you that, but don't run home crying if I break your arm." The huge man put an arm as thick as a loaf of bread on the bar. A crowd gathered as the two clasped hands.

"One, two..." The scant waitress chanted. "...three!"

Sasuke didn't even push back as Kujoh slammed his arm on to the bar. Instead, he reached with his left hand and snatched the knife from his neighbor's steak. As Sasuke's right hand hit the smooth bar, he whirled the knife and slammed it down, stopping just before the shiny tip touched Kujoh's skin. Steak juice rolled down the blade and on to Kujoh's bulky hand. The entire establishment froze.

"There is more than one way to defeat a person, Kujoh-san." Sasuke sneered. "Think I'm too wimpy now?" He stuck the knife back into the steak.

Kujoh leaned back and chuckled.

"I like your style, kid. Welcome to the crew."

-

"Are we there yet?" Naruto wheezed as he and Sakura scaled their 12th flight of stone stairs.

"Almost." Sakura panted. The two trudged up their final step and collapsed on the stone pavement.

"Jeez." Naruto coughed "How do these Sorano Fuuka people do it!?"

The building had the design of a traditional Japanese shrine, large, elegant, rectangular arches stretched over the angular, marble staircases. A long, cobblestone path, lined with trees now separated them from the expansive school rising up in the distance.

"C'mon Sakura-chan! We're almost there!" Naruto jumped up and grabbed Sakura's hand in an attempt to pull her.

"How come you have so much energy?" She muttered.

"Ramen!"

"But you haven't really eaten ramen in weeks."

"I must be like a camel..."

Sakura groaned and got to her feet.

"Great, a crab and a camel. What am I, a zoo keeper?"

They continued down the road until they came to a large circle, upon which the school sat. Upon this circle was engraved many obscure symbols, seals for a school of sealing. Naruto shivered.

"Let's go inside quickly." He hugged himself. "It's getting cold."

Sakura skipped over the intricate pattern.

"What are you talking about, Idiot? It's the middle of May! Besides how can you be cold after that climb? You aren't getting sick, are you?"

She was right, but it didn't make Naruto any less chilly.

"No, I'm fine."

Naruto casually stepped over the designed flooring. Nausea swept through his consciousness. He hit the ground.

"Naruto!?" Sakura dashed to his side. "Naruto, what's wrong!?"

Naruto clamped a hand over his mouth and wrapped the other around his churning stomach. He heaved and threw up all over the pavement.

"Oh, like hell you're fine!" Sakura berated as she wrapped an arm around him and helped him up. "You're sick. I'm taking you home right now." Naruto coughed as she dragged him back across the carved floor and on to the normal road toward the stairs.

"Sakura-chan."

"Hmmm?"

"You can stop. I feel fine."

"What?"

She let of Naruto and he stood, wiping his mouth, as though nothing had happened.

"Yeah, I feel all better now."

Sakura gawked at him.

"What the hell?! You just threw up! Are you still feeling cold?"

"Yeah, a little bit."

"Then we're going home."

"No wait, Sakura-chan, I can do it."

"Huh?"

"You stay here and get that letter to Kouji. I can get home by myself."

"Are you crazy?"

"Honestly, Sakura-chan, I feel perfectly fine now. Besides, we have to complete the mission, right?"

Sakura looked him square in the eye. He seemed to be telling the truth. He wasn't shaking or sickly looking like he was mere moments ago either.

She sighed.

"Fine, but promise me you'll go straight home and into bed. No funny stuff."

"I promise."

The two waved goodbye to each other and went there separate ways.

* * *

Author's Note: MWAHAHAHAHA! Can't you feel the suspence? The excitment!? Oooo what's going to happen...?  I can't even begin to explain how much fun I had with this chapter. Unlike virtually all the other ones, this chapter went exactly by the outline. Normally, I stick in some fluffiness (like the last part of chapter 16) to make things interesting and fun. (that whole crab thing wasn't in the original storyline, I just stuck it in there for kicks). This chapter, however, had none of that. In fact, I think I did this chapter so well that I don't think I need to explain anything! (Unless you have questions, in which case, feel free to ask me. PLease post them as reviews and I'll answer them as thoroughly as possible next chapter, unless, of course, I don't want you to know...)

Next Chapter: Don't take that! Naruto gets wrapped up in a horrible predicament! Sakura finds something, but was it what she was looking for!?


	18. Temptation

**Chapter 18: Temptation**

Sakura walked through the main, open, sliding doors and peered at the campus map that greeted her. She put her finger on the "You are here" star and traced the path to the label "Admissions and Records" She followed a series of outdoor halls, admiring the cherry trees and koi ponds, until she came to the room. It was a small place with a reception desk in front of an entire wall made of wooden drawers; it reminded Sakura of an apothecary's work studio.

"May I help you?" A receptionist smiled up from her paperwork

"Yes," Sakura stepped forward. "I'm looking for a 'Kouji'. I have a message for him."

The receptionist stood up and confronted the wall behind her.

"Kouji… Kouji…" She muttered as she pulled open a drawer and thumbed through file folders. After a few minutes of looking, the secretary turned back to Sakura and shook her head.

"I'm sorry, miss, but there's no longer a Kouji at this school. Does he have a last name? I can ask the Dean, Satori Kikyou, about him."

Bewildered, Sakura fiddled with her fingers.

"No. Thank you." Sakura walked out of the room.

"_No longer a Kouji?" But Sasuke said Akari said he was a student here. Maybe "Kouji" is a nickname…_

Two giggling girls walked by, carrying large scrolls, wearing what appeared to be Sorano Fuuka uniforms: white short sleeved, untucked, button-down, collared shirts with a single breast pocket, red plaid, pleated mini-skirts and flat, braided straw sandals that laced up to the knee with white strings. A simple ensemble, but very cute. Sakura felt unsightly and ugly, especially with her half pink/half black hair. She saw the two girls give her haughty glances and smirks.

"Excuse me." Sakura called to them. "Do either of you know a Kouji?"

The two girls looked at each other.

"Which Kouji? Like, a student or, like, Koujita-sensei?" They both shuddered.

"Umm…" Sakura rubbed the back of her neck. "Akari's boyfriend?"

The two girls blinked at Sakura, blushed and squealed.

"Uwaaaah! You mean Kouji-sama!!" The girl on the right hugged her scroll.

"Of course we know him! Who wouldn't!?" The second girl giggled.

"Well, do you know where I can find him?"

"Oh…" Both girls' faces fell.

"Well, Kouji-sama left a while ago." The first girl sighed sadly.

"Yeah," said the second. "He went home right after Akari left." Both girls glared in hateful jealousy.

Sakura put an exasperated hand on her forehead. Why couldn't anything go exactly as planned?

"So where does he live?"

The girls exchanged looks

"The Hidden Cloud Village, duh!"

The girls strutted off, giggling about "Kouji-sama".

Sakura sighed and collapsed against the wall. Now they had to go to the Hidden Cloud Village? Of all the places in the world! If anyone found out they were Hidden Leaf Nin, even Missing Hidden Leaf Nin, Sakura could only imagine what kinds of deaths lay in store. What next? Rock Country!?

Sakura made her way toward the exit. What would she tell Naruto and Sasuke? Had Sasuke even found a job yet? She hoped not. They had no real reason to stay in Sorano anymore.

_Might as well go home and check on Naruto_, Sakura muttered humbly to herself as she passed by the front door. Suddenly she stopped, the many gears turning in her head.

_That's right! Naruto!_

Sakura turned slowly on her heal at glared at the directory, at the label titled "Scroll Library."

_This is a school of seals and seal jutsu… They'll have information on Naruto's seal. I may never get another chance like this…_

Sakura turned away from the exit and headed back into the bowels of Sorano Fuuka.

-

Naruto meandered through the bustling streets, heading home. The luscious smell of ramen made his mouth water and he silently cursed himself for being poor. His stomach growled unpleasantly; he put a hand over it and groaned.

Maybe Sakura was right, maybe something was wrong with him. Only half an hour ago he'd felt like the devil's leftovers but now, well, he didn't even feel cold anymore. For as long as Naruto could remember, he'd never been sick. He thought of the old woman's prophecy. Maybe he was suppose to lose his lunch; it was defiantly precious and irreplaceable, maybe that's why he'd felt sick.

A hooded stranger roughly shoved into Naruto as he passed through the crowded streets. Naruto fell with a yelp, blinked, gathered himself, and jumped back up.

"Hey! You stupid old man! Watch where you're going!"

The man stopped moving, turned around and faced Naruto, his large form looming over the small, blonde boy like a cat over its dinner. Through the shadow of the cloak, Naruto saw a passive, like Kakashi-sensei's, but with Shikamaru's disgruntled demeanor. The face was older too, not pruney old, old like Jiraiya old.

The man stared down at Naruto in silence.

"You want something?!" Naruto shrieked, not intimidated by the man's mass.

The man looked down at the shiny, gray stones swinging from Naruto's neck.

"That necklace…" The man muttered.

"Yeah, what about it?" Naruto scoffed indignantly. He took a small step back.

"I like it." The man grinned.

Before Naruto could react, the man pulled his hand from his cloak, snatched the gray stones and yanked them off Naruto's head with professional speed.

"Ah!" Naruto cried out as he nearly fell again. He quickly recovered in time to see the man grin evilly, wave the stolen necklace at him and dash off into the crowd.

"Hey! Come back!" Naruto called as he began after the man.

_Wait a minute! You promised Sakura-chan you'd go straight home. No funny stuff._

_But Hokage-sama will murder you when she finds out you got it stolen._

_Hokage-sama isn't here, stupid._

_But you worked hard for those rocks! People can't just steal things! You're a ninja remember! Ninjas do stealing, not get stolen from!_

_But you promised Sakura-chan, and a ninja never breaks his promises!_

"Ehhhaaaaa!" Naruto squeezed his head as his thoughts argued with each other and blindly ran after the man.

_Sorry Sakura-chan,_ he winced, _I'll go home right after I get it back._

"DAAAAMN IIIIIIIIIIIIT!!!"

Naruto swerved around people not bothering to notice that they didn't seem to notice him. The old man was fast. He dodged seamlessly through the crowd, almost as though he had Sharingan eyes.

The cloaked figure broke away from the main crowd and headed up an obscure, dirt mountain path.

_Alright!_ Naruto thought as the path turned into forest, _I'm use to forest terrain. I'll be able to catch him now! _He picked up the pace as he leapt from tree limp to tree limp.

The thief seemed to have the same ability, because he neither slowed nor tripped along the branches.

_Damn it,_ Naruto gritted his teeth, _who is this guy?_

They continued into the depths of the wilderness. Naruto's breathe began to run short and he was forced to slow down. He cursed himself and looked up. The man had completely disappeared.

_Shit._

Naruto ran blindly forward and spotted the man again, who was standing still at the base of a tree watching him. As soon as Naruto came into view, the thief bounded away again.

_Hold on! He's waiting for me?!_

It happened several more times. Naruto slowed due to fatigue and the man would wait and rocket off again. By the time the stranger reached his destination, a large rock formation, Naruto was dragging himself across the ground.

"What's wrong, kid? Tired?" The thief craned over Naruto limp form. He took off his hood to reveal dark gray hair and a pierced ear.

"Shut the hell up!" Naruto sputtered as he inched across the ground like a worm. "Why are you standing there? Dontcha know I'm gonna kick your ass!?"

The man chuckled.

"Not like that, you're not."

"Gimme back my necklace!"

The man took the stringed stones from his cloak and held it up.

"Kid, do you have any idea what this is?"

"Yeah, it's my necklace. Now gimme!" Naruto hobbled upright and snatched at it. The man easily swung the pendant out of harm's way.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you manners?"

"I don't have a mother." Naruto swung and missed again. The man enclosed the necklace in his fist and gave Naruto a stern look.

"Is that so….?" The man turned to the rock wall behind him and put his hand on it. Almost magically, a seal appeared on the rock and it swung in, revealing a well-lit cave.

"Come in." The man gestured to the chasm. Naruto boldly hobbled in, plopped down on the floor and looked around. The caves interior was covered with swords, big ones, small ones, mainly katana. A mattress lay on one side a furnace by the other.

Naruto picked up the nearest katana. It was light with a red/brown scabbard decorated with an elegant nine-tailed fox pattern in gold near the hilt.

_Kyuubi?_

Naruto pulled the blade out seven inches and saw the same intricate design carved into the gray metal along with the name "Kyuubi." Naruto saw his pallid reflection staring back at him through the carving and noticed for the first time that his hair had almost completely grown back to its original yellow.

"I guess you really didn't have a mother." The man shut the rock and snatched the sword away from Naruto. "Don't touch things that don't belong to you."

"Why not? You did it!" Naruto glared.

The man sat down opposite Naruto and pulled out the necklace again. He dangled it between them.

"Kid, how did you come by this? Do you have any idea how valuable it is?"

"I won it. Tsunade-obachan made a bet with me and I won. So give it back!"

The man put an exasperated hand to his forehead.

"That woman… How the hell did she ever become Hokage? Anyway, kid, since you obviously don't know the value this necklace, I'm going to keep it until you learn to protect it."

"What!? You can't do that! I know how valuable it is! It belonged to the first Hokage."

The man glowered.

"If that's all you know, then you don't know the half of it."

Naruto glared.

"And the thing is, other people do and they will try to take it, and because you're so weak they'll be able to steal it."

"Hey! I'm not weak! I'm a chuunin."

"Yet I was able to take this from you easily. You need to be able to defend yourself. This necklace is an icon for Fire Country. Do you have any idea where you are? The Raikage will slaughter you if anyone finds out you're from Fire Country, and that will start a war."

The man ran his fingers through his hair.

"I have no idea why a Konoha kid is all the way up here. I doubt even Tsunade would be dumb enough to send a child and it's not like you're Hatake Kakashi or anything."

Naruto blinked.

"'Hatake Kakashi'..? You know Kakashi-sensei?"

The man threw Naruto an odd look.

"Kakashi-_sensei_?"

"Hey, Old Man! Just who the hell are you, and how do you know Kakashi-sensei?!"

"You don't… know who I am?"

"And you say I'm the stupid one! If I knew who you were I wouldn't be asking!"

The man grinned and cleared his throat. Suddenly he shot his hand out in a pose that reminded Naruto all too much of Jiraiya.

"I am the Great Ronoa! The Bladed Wonder! The Amazing Zoro of Fire Country!"

The man leaned in close.

"and let me guess. You're Uzumaki Naruto."

-

Sakura slid silently down the hall toward the Library and stopped in front of the door. She grabbed the handle and tried to pull the sliding door back, but it wouldn't budge. Bracing herself, Sakura put all her strength into ripping the door off its frame. The floorboards beneath her cracked in protest of her physical power, but even that wasn't enough to open it.

_There must be a seal on it…_

She looked at the "Scroll Library" sign swinging feverishly above her. Beneath the white wording appeared a small subtitle: "Staff, Alumni, and Students only."

_Great,_ Sakura sat herself on the cracked wooden floor. _My one lead and it's reserved. There must be another way in._

Sakura stood up and doubled back to the directory once more. She leaned closed at the slab.

_The library almost touches the outer wall of the school. The only thing that separates them is a small secluded courtyard. I'll bet the library has a window there. On the other side of the outer wall is nothing but forest. Maybe I can climb over and sneak in through the window._

Sakura exited the building, crossed over the intricate seal pattern engraved on the cement and turned to cross into the woods. The trees held a comfort for her as she crouched among their branches and leapt from tree to tree. Before she'd met Ino, Sakura'd spent a lot of time among them. Whenever the other kids had laughed at her, she'd run in the forest and cry against Konoha's large oaks. The trees never laughed at her, never called her "Big Forehead," yet they had an understanding, an unseen presence, that Sakura found very enjoyable. To this day, she still found them amazing.

"_They're incredible, aren't they?" She remembered telling Tsunade after medic training as they both sat under one, watching the light filter passively between the leaves onto their faces. "When trees get hurt, they regenerate. I wish human beings could do that."_

_Tsunade chuckled._

"_What's so funny?"_

"_Nothing, you just sound like my grandfather. He loved trees too."_

Sakura laughed to herself and secretly wished to go back to those days. She jumped swiftly across the branches when the trees began to seem… different. She jumped to the grass-covered ground and looked up into the leaves. The trees groaned ominously. Sakura searched the branches and spotted the problem: a sealed explosive plastered against the bark. Not just one, they were everywhere. Sakura was shocked she hadn't noticed them before.

_Thank you, Trees. _

She continued her journey with more caution until she came to the wall, a sandstone fortress rising over 20 feet above her. Sakura formed seals and gathered chakra in her palms. Slow and cat-like, she began to scale the wall.

_What the hell am I doing?_ She thought as she reached the top. _This is so reckless. Now_ I'm _acting like Naruto. He must be contagious._

She peered over the wall slowly and looked into the courtyard. More cherry trees accented the little park along with a small pond into a corner, but no people. Sakura looked at the back of the Library and, sure enough, a glass window lay embedded in the wooden wall.

Sakura dropped down onto the grass below and looked around. Still no one. She dashed over to the window and tried to pry it open. No luck. She unsheathed her red dagger and lodged the stainless steel in the crack. She pulled, but there was no luck there either.

_Damn it._

Only one other option. Sakura grimaced as she pulled her fist back, aiming in at the frail glass. She winced at the crashing sound she knew it was going to make. She flexed all her muscles and….

"That won't work, you know."

Sakura froze. Her heart thumped loudly in her chest. Slowly, she turned to address the speaker.

An elderly woman sat nonchalantly on a bench beneath a blooming cherry blossom tree, the only blooming cherry tree in the city. If anything, she was the opposite of Tsunade. As opposed to a woman who tried to fake her age with beauty, this woman managed to portray beauty in age. Her long hair, a color difficult to determine between gray or blonde, stretched to a long ponytail at the base of her neck and fell over large red robes. The wrinkles on her face were like the seams of a striking silk gown and she sat on the bench, eying Sakura with bright gold eyes.

"Ah… You're that fortune teller!" Sakura exclaimed.

The woman smiled and stood up.

"Cherry trees only bloom in the spring…" Sakura whispered. "Just who are you?"

The woman glowed down the bridge of her nose at Sakura.

"I'm Satori Kikyou, Dean of this school. I believe you have a question for me, or you wouldn't be breaking in to my library."

Sakura clenched her fists.

"There's a seal I want to know about. Please, can you tell me about it?"

"Why should I? You're a penniless outsider who's trying to steal scrolls. I have no reason to help you."

"I wasn't trying to steal them. I just need to look at them. Please! I need to know if my friend is okay…"

Satori Kikyou fixed her golden eyes on Sakura, who looked sadly at the ground.

"What if…" Sakura muttered. "What if it's hurting him? What if the seal is eating away at him on the inside? I don't know… I need to know…" Sakura felt tears welling in her eyes.

"I need to know so I can help him!" She screamed.

Cherry blossom petal fluttered around the courtyard like feathers of a fallen bird. Kikyou chuckled slightly. Sakura wiped her eyes and looked up, bewildered.

"Then prove to me that you are worth my time." Kikyou said with commanding authority. "This school is full of stupid, rich people; the smart ones cannot afford it. Prove to me that you are smart enough to be bothered with."

She reached behind her and pulled out a thick scroll about two feet long and tossed it to Sakura.

"Come back once you've learned this and then we'll talk." She vanished into a puff of smoke.

Sakura hugged the scroll tightly to her stomach and read its label.

"Advanced Bloodline Binding Seal."

* * *

Author's Note: Firstly, I'd like to thank all the reviewers! 100 reviews! Hells yeah!!! and then everyone who reads this fic. We've made it over the 40,000 word barrier! Woohooo! btw, Sakura's tree thing isn't craziness... it's something that will come up in after a few arcs... :X I've said too much again...

Sasuke and Blushing: It's been pointed out that Sasuke is a lot more personable, almost out of character in more recent chapters... (or perhaps through the entire fic... who knows). Good. He's suppose to be acting a little moody, overly macho, and a little more sensitive around women. Why? It's about mid-May in the story right now... (I think the percise date is May 19th. If you want an idea of the the scale, they left Konoha April 15th. Yes, I have an entire calendar from now until the end of the story, detailing every event... yes, I'm obsessive.) Sasuke's turns 15 on July 23... Think about it. ;) Yay for puberty! Yes, I intend for them to grow, but it's too early in the story to tell you all that much. ;)

Next Chapter: Extracurricular activities begin! Sasuke's translucent discovery!


	19. Exchange

**Chapter 19: Exchange**

Sasuke fiddled irritably with his bow tie, trying desperately to pull it together; he'd fumbled for half an hour with no success.

_Geez, who wears these anymore anyway?_ He pulled the scrap of cloth from around his neck and resisted the urge to incinerate it.

"I'm home." Sakura's voice resounded to his left as the door squeaked shut. "Sorry, I'm late. I picked some cherries on the way home."

Sasuke grunted as he pulled at the bow tie.

Sakura sighed.

"What?" Sasuke inquired.

"So you _did_ get a job."

"Of course. We agreed that I should."

"Oh well, not much we can do about it now. Nice uniform, by the way."

Sasuke turned around. The bartender's suit made him feel like a wedding cake.

"Really? You think so?"

"No" Sakura placed a large scroll by her pack. "You look dorky in suspenders."

"Gee, thanks. What's with the scroll?"

"Awww, nothing. Just something on loan to me. Where's Naruto?"

Sasuke stopped fiddling with his bow tie.

"I thought he was with you."

"He was. You mean he hasn't come back?" Sakura placed a large bag of cherries on the stained counter by the stove.

Sasuke stretched the black fabric absent-mindedly.

"I haven't seen him."

"That idiot! He promised he'd go straight home and to bed!"

"Why? What happened?"

"He got sick when we were at Sorano Fuuka."

Sasuke looked up from his tie and gave Sakura a stern look.

"Are you serious?"

"What? Of course. Why?"

Sasuke rubbed the ridges of his bottom lip.

"Naruto shouldn't be getting sick…"

"Why not?"

"Naruto never gets sick."

"We're at a higher altitude then Konoha. It's not strange to feel queasy or unusually out of energy."

"That's not what I mean_." Even with the altitude, Kyuubi should have protected Naruto. Is there something wrong with the fox?_

"Then what?"

"Nevermind." Sasuke began his battle with his bow tie again.

"I'm worried." Sakura leaned against the grimy wall. "I hope he's okay."

"I'm sure he's fine. He's tough." Sasuke grumbled. "If he doesn't show up in half an hour, we'll go look for him." He failed once more with his tie.

"Come here." Sakura sighed.

"It would be easier if I had a mirror or a diagram or something."

"Nah, you don't need any of that." Sakura reached up and took the ends of the tie from Sasuke. He blushed as her fingers brushed his chin.

"You need a woman."

Sasuke's face burned like a furnace and his heart skipped enough beats to kill him.

"S-sakura-chan!?"

"I didn't mean it like that, lover boy." She pulled the tie tight. "My mother used to say that to my father a lot..." Sakura whispered. "I still miss them."

"You'll miss them forever." Sasuke whispered back.

Sakura looked up into his eyes, eyes tainted with the pain of loss, and the acceptance of understanding. She smiled in unspeakable thanks.

"HEY!"

Sasuke and Sakura jumped and whirled at the door. The frame held the collapsed, panting form of Naruto. Leaves stuck crookedly out of his black/yellow hair; dirt and bruises clung to his skin like an extra layer. Something shiny glimmered on his back.

"What the hell are you two whispering about so close together!?" He fumed, pointing an accusing finger at them. "Get your hands offa her, Sasuke, you bastard!"

"I'm not touching her, dumbass."

Sakura dashed to Naruto and thwacked him cleanly on the head. Naruto kissed the floor as in cracked beneath his face.

"You have a lot of nerve telling us what to do! Where the hell have you been?!"

"I'll tell you once you tell me why you were getting all snuggly with Sasuke!"

Sakura's face blossomed into a tomato color.

"Stupid! We weren't 'getting snuggly'! I was fixing his tie!"

Naruto blinked and took a second look at Sasuke's ensemble. With a great heave, Naruto fell over, bawling with laughter.

"You… look so… stupid!" He wheezed, rolling around on the floor as a vein in Sasuke's forehead throbbed.

Sakura pulled Naruto's cheek.

"Hey! Ow!" He cried in a muffled voice.

"I think it's safe to assume you're not sick anymore."

She dragged him all the way inside, shut the door and let go of his cheek. Naruto rubbed his aching face.

"So, where have you been? And what's with the sword?" Sakura pointed to the long, shiny, reddish/brown object strapped to his back.

"Oh Sakura-chan," He blared, "it was so horrible! I was gonna come straight home, but this stupid old man stole the necklace I won from Tsunade-obachan! I followed him to this cave and there were all these swords and he said he needed to teach me stuff or he wouldn't give the necklace back. So now I have to go back to that stupid cave tomorrow. Awww man…"

"Wait, you just left the necklace there?!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Idiot." Sasuke fingered his bow tie. "That guy's probably just going to run off with it."

"He gave me this sword in exchange." Naruto held it up so Sakura could see the intricate fox pattern that adorned it. "He said he was from Konoha too. He knew Kakashi-sensei."

"Really?" Sakura inquired, "What's his name?"

"Roronoa Zoro, or something stupid like that."

Sasuke and Sakura exchanged fearful glances.

"Ronoa?" Sasuke asked tentatively.

"The Great Zoro of Fire Country?" Sakura flinched.

"Yeah, that's the guy! You guys know him or something?"

Sakura pulled at Naruto's cheek again.

"Ow! Stop that!"

"Seriously, did you sleep through _all_ of Iruka-sensei's lectures?!" She berated as she stretched his face like rubber.

"You say that like it's a bad thing!"

Sakura let Naruto cheek snap back into place.

"Ronoa-sama is a legendary ninja." She explained. "He's up there with Jiraiya-sama and Kakashi-sensei's father. He's mainly credited for combining Ninjutsu with the art of Bushido; he's like the one-man Honōmoto clan of Fire Country."

"What's the Honōmoto clan?"

Sakura glared down at Naruto.

"You really _did_ sleep through all of Iruka-sensei's lectures!"

"The Honōmoto clan of Rock Country integrates firearms with ninjutsu." Sasuke explained irritably. "They say that clan is the reason we lost so many in the Ninja Wars. But forget about them, I thought Ronoa was dead."

Sakura nodded.

"So did I. Maybe that's what we're meant to think and he's really undercover."

Sasuke grinned and crossed his arms.

Naruto cocked his head quizzically.

"What?" Sakura mumbled.

"I guess our fake death wasn't an original idea after all." Sasuke chuckled.

"You're right." Sakura laughed sheepishly.

Naruto reached up and tugged playfully on Sakura's white mesh sleeve.

"Ne, Sakura-chan? What did that Kouji guy say? Did he give us any money? Can we eat ramen tonight!?"

Sakura collapsed to the floor. Her two friends glanced questioningly at her.

"He's…. not here." She muttered.

"What?!" Naruto freaked, "But Akari said-"

"I know what Akari said, and he was here. He's just not here anymore. Apparently he left after Akari did."

"Where'd he go?" Sasuke asked as he joined Naruto and Sakura on the ground.

"Hidden Cloud Village… He lives there."

A queasy feeling tickled Sasuke's stomach.

"Well, we can't leave now!" Naruto cried. "I have to get Shodaime's necklace back!"

"I don't think leaving is an option." Sasuke said. "I can't just quit my job; I haven't even started."

"I would also like to stay here a bit longer." Sakura looked distant and didn't articulate. The two boys exchanged glances but didn't ask.

Sakura stood up and stretched, her back cracking the several places.

"Well, I guess we'll stay here until Naruto gets his necklace back. So who wants cherries? And I don't want to hear anymore about ramen!" She caught Naruto as he opened his mouth to complain.

-

Sasuke scrubbed at the dingy window and squinted at the skyline. Black, writhing buildings twisted in the florescent dawn, hiding the most spectacular aspect of a sunrise, the sun. The day-glow pink, laced with orange and yellow reached out over the horizon like outstretched fingers, but the magnificent white orb, the epicenter of it all, remained belittled by the grimy row of apartment in this ghetto. Funny how a few poverty-stricken buildings could ruin the highlight of your day.

Sasuke grumbled, pulled his dark cargos up over his boxers, and turned back to his comrades asleep on the floor. The night had burned like a fever; even though they all slept on top of their sleeping bags, each was beaded with sweat. His stomach grumbled unpleasantly, cherries didn't make a good dinner, but Sasuke shoved the feeling out of his mind. There wasn't much he could do about it.

A small groan erupted from the floor and Sasuke turned to see Sakura roll out of bed. She sat up on her knees, smacked her lips and looked around the room with half-shut eyes. She slowly tilted to her feet and staggered toward him, her red halter clinging haphazardly around her neck, white panties plastered across her hips.

Sasuke felt his chest heat and a dollop of sweat roll down his neck. Due to their lack of clothing, they all slept in their underwear. Sasuke thought he'd be used to seeing her like this, but there was something about the way her hair stuck out arbitrarily, yet encompassed her sleep-veiled face, and how the sweat glistened off her radiantly glowing skin and ran down the curve of her thigh that made him ogle.

Sasuke shook his head violently. He had more important things to worry about, like his aching stomach. He felt so wrong gawking at her; he wasn't Jiraiya… or Naruto for that matter. Sasuke cursed himself for his own weakness and something soft thudded hard against his back.

"Sasukeeeeeeee…" Sakura whined, half asleep, as she lean her cheek against his bare shoulder.

"Wh-what!?" Sasuke felt his pulse in his ears.

"Are you hungry?"

"No." He lied.

"You're a liar. I'm hungry too." She muttered. "And if you're hungry and I'm hungry, then Naruto is going to be a ravenous beast when he wakes up."

Sakura fell against the wall as Sasuke turned to look at the sleeping blonde. Naruto lay sprawled over his sleeping bag like a crab. His yellow shirt drifted casually over his stomach, which he scratched with his right hand, and his mouth gaped open as he snored, drool cascading down the side of his face. Sasuke had the incredible urge to poke him with something, like one would a beached jellyfish, but resisted.

"It's too hot and too early to be this hungry…" Sakura slid down the wall. "What time is it…?"

"Around 5:30."

Sakura groaned again.

"You're inhuman, Sasuke… an inhuman crab…"

Sasuke pulled his mesh shirt over his head.

"You're not making any sense, Sakura."

"Who?"

Sasuke threw her shorts at her; they landed on her head like a hat.

"Wake up and get dressed. I'll wake up Naruto."

Sakura mumbled something incomprehensible and lazily pulled the shorts out of her hair.

Sasuke leaned over Naruto and gently kicked him.

"Hey dumb-ass, wake up."

Naruto didn't respond. Sasuke kicked him harder, but there was still no response.

"It's no use." Sakura said as she hoisted up her shorts. "You know he sleeps like a rock."

"I guess it's time to play dirty." Sasuke bent down next to Naruto's ear.

"What are you doing, Sakura?! Put your clothes back on!"

Naruto shot up like a rocket, snorting gibberish. He looked around blankly.

"Perv." Sakura muttered as she fixed her jeans.

"Why am I up…?" Naruto mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"That's good question…" Sakura stretched.

Sasuke threw Naruto his shorts.

"Let's go for a run or something. Just because we're not in Konoha anymore doesn't mean we can slack off."

Naruto blinked blankly and fell back against his sleeping bag.

"I dun wanna…"

Sakura reached down, grabbed Naruto by the ankle, and proceeded to drag him out the door.

"C'mon, idiot. You have to see Ronoa in a couple hours anyway."

They ran around the awakening town for several hours in the dim light, fished for breakfast and hit the public baths. By the time the errands were over, the sun had fully risen in the sky.

At 11:30, Naruto finally decided to visit Ronoa and at 12:30, Sasuke huffed to work in his uniform. Sakura was left to her self, and her scroll, for the rest of the day.

-

Sasuke walked through the door of the bar and walked up to the counter.

"Oh good, Aoi, you're here." Kujoh cried as he tossed Sasuke an apron. "Put this on and clean some cups, will ya?"

Sasuke caught the apron and hopped the bar. The door's squeaked open and shut again.

"Yogen!!" Kujoh bellowed at the newcomer. "It's been so long!! Where have you been!?"

Sasuke bent under the counter and grabbed a wash cloth and a dirty mug. Absent-mindedly, he began to scrub it.

"Oh, I've been out in Wind Country." This man, Yogen, sighed. He had a scruffy, worn voice of a traveler, but unlike he other merchants milling around the bar, he seemed to be educated.

"Wind Country!? Wow, that's far!" Kujoh exclaimed heartily.

Sasuke scrubbed at a blotch of lipstick on his mug's rim. No matter how hard he scrubbed it, the pale, translucent patch would just smear. Sasuke dunked his wash cloth in a bucket of hot water and attacked it again.

"It's been crazy over there." Yogen was saying. "They say there might be a civil war!"

"A civil war!?"

"Yeah. You remember that attack they did on the Hidden Leaf Village a while back? Well, a lot of Wind ninja died in that attack. The former Kazekage was murdered by a Leaf ninja too."

Sasuke's ears pricked and he scoffed to himself.

"A lot of people in Wind Country want revenge." Yogen went on. "They're calling for the new Kazekage to attack Fire Country. But it's really controversial; the whole country is polarized over it. It's gotten so out of hand, riots have started breaking out."

"Well, I'd go for it." Kujoh said. "I'd love to give those Konoha bastards what they deserve, those lying cheating excuses for human-beiungs! Am I right men?!"

The bar erupted with cheers, which ended abruptly with a loud bang as Sasuke slammed the clean mug on the bar. He could feel the whole establishment staring at his back and he shook off his rage.

"Sorry." He muttered and reached for a new cup.

* * *

Author's Note: Okay... I know, boring chapter... (but yay for One Piece references! btw, I love Marimo head... so don't kill me! I know that section 2 of this was cu short (I really wanted to show them running and stuff) but it got too long, so I was forced to make cuts... besides, it's not like it matters to the storyline. I apologize for all the "SasuSaku moments" (they're not really. I believe I've stated my views on pairings in this fic already). I needed to give Sasuke some props b/c he wasn't in the last chapter at all. I also apologize for this chapter being so damn fluffy, I'll try and create some action next chapter!

Next Chapter: The real training begins!


	20. Education

**Chapter 20: Education**

Naruto pushed through a league of bushes and stumbled on to the gray rock of Ronoa's abode. The old man already sat on the landing before his door, a bubbling tea kettle atop a crackling fire.

"You're late." He casually sipped from a steaming cup as Naruto clumsily tripped up the rock.

"You didn't tell me I had to be here at a certain time!"

"It's 12:00. It's almost time for lunch, brat." Ronoa stood up.

"Don't call me that!"

Ronoa picked up his kettle and poured some of the contents into a fresh mug.

"Here, drink this." He handed it to Naruto.

Naruto gingerly put the cup to his lips and bravely took a large gulp. The concoction marinated on his taste buds before Naruto clamped a hand over his mouth and heaved.

If someone took ground brussel sprouts, sautéed them in mustard, rancid milk and lemon puree, threw the mixture into the dirt, beat it with a weasel, and pickled it in sewage, the combination would've tasted like candy in comparison to the rank bile that clogged Naruto's throat.

"Bleh!" Naruto sputtered. "What the hell is this stuff!?"

"Your punishment for being late. Everyday you don't show up on time, you'll have to drink it."

"Like hell I'll drink anymore of this shit-"

Ronoa dodged forward and snatched Naruto's nose between his index and middle fingers. As Naruto opened his mouth in protest, he poured the entire contents of the kettle down his throat. Naruto tried to cough it up, but risked drowning. In the end, he fell over nearly foaming at the mouth, the grotesque fluid bubbling in his stomach.

"Are you trying to kill me?!" Naruto gagged as he scraped himself off the granite.

"Only if I'm lucky." Ronoa sneered. "I see you brought that sword I gave you."

Naruto tried desperately to wipe the vile taste from his mouth.

"Good." Ronoa said as he picked up a large katana. "Let's get started."

"I don't care about Bushido." Naruto cried. "I'm a ninja, dammit, not a samurai."

Ronoa glared at him.

"You're an idiot. There isn't a strong ninja out there who doesn't have skills outside ninjutsu. Ninjutsu is ninjutsu, but ninjutsu combine with something else is strength."

"I don't give a damn about your stupid ramblings. I'm tired of stupid old guys telling me what to do."

"You little brat! You know, the legendary three wouldn't be so legendary if they didn't incorporate Summoning no Jutsu into their ninjutsu."

"Yeah, well then I don't need Bushido! I know how to summon too!"

Ronoa eyed him suspiciously.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah! Sit back and watch, stupid old man!"

Naruto bit his thumb and made the seals, slamming his hands to the ground.

"Summoning no Justu!"

The intricate seal pattern embroidered the ground. An enormous puff of smoke filled the area.

_Alright, it's him!_ Naruto chuckled.

_GAMA…_ The smoke cleared.

… _kichi …_

Naruto's face hung sourly as the small red frog struck a pose.

"Nice summoning skills…" Ronoa muttered sarcastically.

"Shut up!"

"Naruto!? Is that you!?" The little toad exclaimed. "My god! We all thought you were dead! And you…" He turned to Ronoa. "You're Ronoa, aren't you!? Oh man, wait 'til Jiraiya hears this!"

Naruto twitched.

_Oh shit!_

Ronoa made a few hand seals and opened his palm in Gamakichi's face. With a squeak, the little frog was sent tumbling a few feet before lying still on his back.

"Ah! Gamakichi!" Naruto cried, scooping the limp, red amphibian up into his arms. "What did you do to him!?"

"Don't worry, I didn't kill him."

Gamakichi disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"It's a memory modifying jutsu. He won't remember either of us."

"Oh."

"You're not the brightest star in the sky, are you?"

"What the hell is that suppose to mean?!"

"Nope, guess not. Now c'mon, we've got work to do."

-

Sakura looked cautiously around her before tiptoeing gingerly across the barren rooftop. The drying clothes from other tenants billowed from strung ropes like a regatta in the humidity. Sakura hugged the large scroll as she crossed the hot concrete with bare feet. She dashed over to the building's water tank and plopped down in its shadow. Gently she peeled at the scrolls page and rolled it open.

"'Advanced Bloodline Binding Seal. by Satori Kikyou. Sorano Fuuko School of Seals and Seal Jutsu. Sorano, Lightning Country.'" Sakura read. "'Part I: Introduction and Cautionary Foresights.'"

Sakura sighed and prepared for a long haul. She silently thanked Tsunade for those months the old woman had forced her to do nothing but read medic scrolls. Days had gone by and her skin had gone pale with lack of sun, and she had cursed Tsunade for it, but now she knew the tricks to reading long, boring scrolls.

"'The Advanced Bloodline Binding Seal is a seal jutsu to block all bloodline abilities and techniques within the radius of the seal…. Blah blah blah… has no volume limit… can be done by one person with sufficient time… blah blah…" She scrolled down. "This seal requires approx. 4 pints of blood and, therefore, is not intended to produce in one sitting if being produce alone.'" Sakura coughed and reread it to make sure she got it right.

_4 pints!? The human body only has 8! Yeah, try it in one sitting and you're likely to bleed to death._

"'The seal has been broken up into 12 sections. Each section can be sealed into a sutra for later use.'" Sakura thought back on Akari's seal and nodded in understanding. "'It is very important that you perform the seal correctly. Failure to do so and failure to unseal incorrectly will turn the Advanced Bloodline Binding seal into a power explosive.

"'Part I: Usagi-gatsu.'"

The scroll began to describe the first section of the seal. Each, Sakura etched into her mind, memorizing the strokes of each bloody swatch.

_I'll have to find a better place to practice. _Sakura muttered to herself as she looked around the dirty, ancient rooftop. _I'll give myself a disease through the cut on my finger. I'll attract attention too._

Sakura brushed a pink lock of hair out of her face and continued into her scroll.

Around six o'clock, Sakura heard a familiar cursing from the street below. Quickly, she rolled up the scroll, scampered across the rooftop, hopped down the stairs and dashed into their apartment. She was stashing the large scroll by her pack when the door flew open again.

"Ugh…" Naruto groaned as he fell inside, the sword clattering down beside him. He was even more battered and bruised than the day before and Sakura noticed several long, straight scars on his arms.

"Naruto!" Sakura ran to his side. "Are you okay?"

He held up a string, attached to which were three dangling fish.

"I brought these back like you asked." He muttered.

"Idiot, I'm not worried about the fish!" But she took them anyway.

"Come inside and I'll fix those wounds for you." Sakura placed the fish in a pan on the stove. She wheeled around when she didn't hear the door close and found Naruto still glued to the floor.

"I can't move…" He whined.

Sakura sighed and walked over to him. She knelt her back down to him and motioned with her hands that he should climb up. Painfully, he clambered on to her back and hugged her neck as she picked up his sword and shut the door.

"Getting a piggy back ride from a girl…" Sakura said as she placed his sword next to his stuff. "…where's your masculine pride, Naruto?"

Naruto placed his head against her back.

"Sakura-chan smells good…" He muttered sleepily.

Sakura stopped and blushed a deep red.

"St-stupid." She whispered. If he knew that she was trying to find out what his seal was for, would he still think so?

Gingerly, she plopped him down on his sleeping bag. Naruto groaned with the excess movement. Sakura reached into her bag and produced her medical kit.

"Okay, show me your arms." She said as she sat down next to him. Naruto held them out like he was handing her an umbrella. The scars checker-boarded his skin, flecks of blood mixed in with his skin tone; these had once been open wounds.

"Ronoa-sama did this to you?" She asked as she smeared anti-bacterial over the scars.

Naruto nodded.

"Yeah, he taught me a lot of stuff though, but he keeps beating me up."

"He _is_ a master of Bushido, Naruto."

"I don't care. I still don't like him beating me up."

Sakura laughed out of spite.

"Fair enough."

-

Sasuke's shift ended at 8:00. Daylights saving time still held rays of light in the sky, but not enough to see clearly. Sasuke pulled off his bartender's shirt to fight the early summer heat as he meandered down the backwater streets. His calves ached, standing for seven hours had to be a crime against humanity, and his stomach grumbled. Sasuke looked at the paycheck in his hand. It wasn't much, but it would pay the bills and feed them, maybe even get Naruto his beloved ramen.

The street lights flickered on. The world blinked in and out of color as Sasuke splashed through them.

"Hey you! Stop right there!"

Sasuke looked up. Five rough-looking guys, all around 15 or 16, stood barring the road. Several of them had weapons.

_Great…_Sasuke muttered. _Thugs._

"Excuse me." Sasuke grumbled as he tried to push through the barricade.

"Hold it, buddy." The center-most ruffian put a hand on Sasuke's chest and pushed him back a step. "You see, if youse wants ta get through, youse gotsta pay this here toll."

Sasuke grumbled in annoyance.

"And if youse don't…" A large one on the left smacked his weapon of choice, a large plank of wood, into his palm and they all smirked.

"I don't have care about this toll of yours." Sasuke put his hands in his pockets.

"I'm going." He pushed forward into their barrier.

"Oh, a tough guy, eh?" the center-man glared as he raised his baseball bat.

"Wait, Ku!" A short one called out. "This guy… maybe we should leave him alone… He looks kind of like Kouji with that ponytail."

"This shit ain't Kouji! No one talks back to Ku of the Raibara East!"

The center-man brought the baseball bat down at Sasuke's head. Sasuke grabbed it just above his temple, pivoted his back to the attacker and hunched, pulling the bat, and its owner's arm, over his shoulder.

With the swift movement of Rock Lee's Taijutsu, Sasuke's foot met his assailant's jaw. There was a sickening pop as the boy's arm snapped from its socket. He cried out in pain, staggered a couple steps, and fell over unconscious.

Sasuke straightened and flipped the bat in his hand as the others started at him. The large one brought his club down; Sasuke blocked with the bat. He narrowly dodged a punch from another attacker as he rolled into the circle of the large one's arms and struck the bat up into the large one's chin. The giant collapsed and Sasuke leapt away from his body.

The weaponless guy, who threw the punch, pounced and Sasuke caught him off guard by casually tossing the baseball bat to him. The weaponless assailant caught the bat with both hands and found Sasuke's fist in his nose.

Something metallic sparkled somewhere behind Sasuke. As the weaponless attacker fell, he dropped the bat. Sasuke snatched it from the air and flung it with all his strength at the mysterious metal object. Sasuke turned to see the bat ricochet off a four attacker's head, the shiny metal thing, a dagger, falling away from his unconscious, plummeting form. Sasuke caught the knife as it fell and wheeled around, holding it to the neck of the short thug, the last one, who had a metal pipe raised above his head to strike.

Sasuke glared at the little man, his black eyes burrowing into the short thug's beady ones. The small creature trembled under the intensity of Sasuke's killer instinct and dropped his pipe.

A loud scream erupted to their left as the weaponless attacker picked himself off the ground and charged. Swiftly, Sasuke hurled the knife at him. The dagger spun like a boomerang, nicked the attacker's collarbone and struck the wooden fence behind him. The blade hummed ominously as the attacker froze, small droplets of blood beading down his chest.

Sasuke straightened his shirt, tossed his hair, and walked off in silence.

-

"I'm home."

Sasuke closed the door behind him as he stepped into the apartment. Both his comrades were fast asleep, Sakura propped up against the wall, Naruto with his head in her lap.

_And he accuses_ me_ of getting snuggly with her._

Sasuke noticed something attached to Naruto's forehead. He bent down for a closer look.

"'Sasuke – There's a fish for you on the stove. Sakura.'"

Sasuke looked at her, sleeping peacefully with her arm around the large scroll she'd brought home. Sasuke peered questionably at it.

_Advanced Bloodline Binding Seal!?_

* * *

Author's Note: Yay for the gloriousness that is Chapter 20! Wow, looking back, I honestly didn't think I'd be here by Chapter 20... honestly, I thought I'd be done with this thing by now... :/ This is also a landmark that, officially, Naruto Unlimited now takes up 100 pages (w/o Author's notes) on my word processor! Huzzah! Oh yeah, is it just me or does Sasuke get a lot more love than everyone else... :hates:: WHY!? This was suppose to be a Naruto arc! The next arc is suppose to be a Sasuke arc... oops... I've said too much again. Once again I apologize for my suckiness at writing battle scenes. It makes a lot of sense in my head, but never seems to wind up that way on paper. btw, I didn't throw the battle in there for kicks... it relates to the next large arc... :X I've said to much again... I better shut up before I tell you the entire story. 

Next Chapter: Sakura's mission complete? The beginning on an end (but not THE end...).


	21. Discovery

**Chapter 21: Discovery**

The next few weeks progressed in a similar fashion. Sasuke worked everyday at the bar and everyday without fail, the band of thugs would be waiting, a little more beat than the day before but waiting nether less.

Naruto went everyday to see Ronoa. The old man didn't teach much and just attacked Naruto with his sword. Soon Naruto learned the basic ways to block from sheer trial and error. The intense training left him with many bruises and cuts, due to his failed attempts at blocking and attacking, which he brought home healed to Sakura, whose curiosity only blossomed next to the healing prowess.

Sakura, herself, found an abandoned seal training ground and began to use it as her own. She went out and bought an entire roll of sutras (behind the back of Naruto and Sasuke) in addition to their daily food supply. Everyday, after Naruto and Sasuke left, she'd sneak off to her secret training and practice.

12 days passed without incident, like the calm before a storm as the weather grew warmer, the days grew longer and the month of May slowly faded into June.

-

Sakura wearily peeled her green eyes open and stared into the blue sky. Her body felt like concrete, her head spun like a carnival ride and her inhuman strength felt about as strong as a petal in the wind.

_Am I alive…? _At this point, she could care less. Her body rejected any movement and her mind rejected any thought. Weakly, she held up her hand to the sky and cringed.

_I look like Orochimaru._ She thought as she admired her pale complexion. _I shouldn't be lying in the sun; I'll give myself cancer._

Her arms shook as she hoisted herself up. Her head continued to spin like a merry-go-round. Blindly, she patted the area around her, fumbling over the granite flooring, faltering over the neat piles of sutras, scraping across the yards of scroll that curled around the stone arena like one of Manda's disciples, until, at last, her hand landed on a plastic canteen. Sakura fumbled with the cap and slammed the bottle against her mouth. A warm, bitter liquid ran down her throat. She coughed as she pulled it away and wiped her mouth.

"Uh…" The rank juice simmered with her stomach acid. She felt like she was going to hurl, but her head stopped its crazy dance. She replaced the cap, set the canteen down and inspected the bloody etchings on the ground in case she messed them up in her search. The gray stone glimmered under the dark, red patterns of the seal. The intricate design made its epicenter at a blank sutra and branched out around it like the spindly legs of a spider. Nothing seemed smeared or smudged.

Sakura looked down at her pale limbs. Flakes and smears of blood dotted her arms and legs, like paint to a dedicated artist.

_I must look like a serial killer… _She thought humbly.

In her crazy pursuit, Sakura made two sets of each of the Binding Seal's 12 parts, one for practice, one to show Kikyou. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but 8 pints of blood later, Sakura began to have her doubts. She couldn't chug the blood production serum fast enough to keep up with her loss, so her skin paled and she felt light headed and dizzy.

_C'mon, you can do it… _She encouraged herself. _This is the last one._

Sakura swayed upright and shook her head of any nausea that was left. She stumbled over to the blank sutra, stood over it and made a few seals. She placed her hands rigidly over it.

"Sealing no Jutsu!" She cried. Chakra began to flood the area. The power blew the scroll around and nipped at the edges of the completed sutras, held down by rocks.

"Ryu-gatsu!"

The fell wind ceased its meandering and blew straight up. Sakura's hair pulled harshly away from her scalp. The drawn inscriptions began to slowly twist into the sutra, like a vacuum, but with much more reluctance. As the blood patterns were sucked in, the sutra began to inscribe the words "ryu-gatsu" across its surface.

Several seconds later the word completed itself, the last of the blood pattern receded into the sutra, and the immense wind stopped abruptly. Sakura fell over into a heap, the sealed sutra blowing like a leaf in her wake.

"Good job. I'm impressed to see you so far along at this point in time."

Sakura rolled to a sitting position and found Satori Kikyou watching her from amoungst the trees.

"It took the last person I taught it to tooknearly six weeks, and you've only done it in two."

"Satori Kikyou-sensei..." Sakura muttered. "What are you doing here?"

"It is my duty, I believe, to make sure you're doing this properly." Kikyou replied nonchalantly as she made her way toward Sakura. "I can't very well have you blowing half the town up because you preformed it wrong."

The old woman bent down and picked up the newly created Ryu-gatsu sutra.

"However, it doesn't seem like that will be a problem. Come now, finish it off." She handed Sakura the slip of paper and moved off to the side again. She snapped her fingers and the yards of scroll instantly rolled themselves back up into a tight bundle.

With a groan, Sakura stood up and hobbled over to her neat stacks of sutras. She flicked a rock off one, picked up the pile and walked into the middle of the stone flooring. Sakura unsheathed her red dagger and pierced her finger. Red blood dripped down her palm and, with it, Sakura drew a spiral on the granite floor. She placed each of the twelve sutras in an even circle around the spiral and stood in the middle.

"Sealing no Justu!" Sakura cried forming several complex hand motions. The chakra-induced wind picked up again, whipping around in a circle like the tail of a demon.

"Advance Bloodline Binding Seal!" She slammed her hands on to the spiral. The wind blew upward, as though the ring of sutras had created a reversed vacuum. The pieces of paper remained stuck to the ground, unaffected by the updraft and began to unseal themselves. The dark red inscriptions tiptoed out toward the spiral core, inching closer from all directions. The creeping writing stopped an inch away from the spiral, along with the wind. Sakura stumbled backward and took in her work. The entire platform was covered by little black designs that circled outward around her. It was like taking in the splendor of a sprawling city. Sakura stared down, confused.

Kikyou smiled and stepped forward onto the design.

"Excellent work." She said.

"No…. No, this is all wrong!" Sakura exclaimed. "I must have messed up somewhere…"

Kikyou gave her a funny look.

"Why do you say that? It's very well done."

"Then this is the wrong seal! Because this doesn't look anything like Akari's! Hers wasn't so complex… It was linear and…"

"… a fake." Kikyou replied grimly.

Sakura snapped up in surprise.

"Akari faked her seal?!" She gulped, "but then, how…?"

Kikyou sighed.

"The judges would've voted for her anyway. Usomaru rigged it. It was a clever scam to transfer money without suspicion."

"But they let her keep the prize!"

Kikyou laughed.

"You honestly think the Pageant Committee knows anything about Seal Jutsu? They're not even ninja! Just some old guys who sit in an office and get pushed around by NinCola. They wouldn't know the first thing about seals."

"But she was still cheating… She could've gotten disqualified."

"That's probably what she wanted."

Sakura looked at the ground in thought.

"Akari is a lot smarter than most people give her credit for… than _I_ give her credit for." Kikyou smiled.

Sakura looked up questionably.

"I know that this seal was preformed correctly because you followed the directions and it didn't explode." Kikyou went on. "If the seal is preformed or destroyed incorrectly, it explodes and, depending on how you mess it up, you may or may not have a few seconds before it detonates. Akari, while she attended my academy, was one of my brightest students, but she had very little confidence in her abilities. I bet she feared messing up the seal and killing everyone. That is probably why she faked it."

"I see."

"But that is in the past. Show me you know how to destroy this thing properly so I can teach you about your seal."

Sakura nodded and walked across the intricate pattern.

"The destructive seal is in the Tora-gatsu… 24th line… 10th column…" Sakura tiptoed over the seal and bent down over it and swiped her bleeding finger over the 24-10 fragment. Sakura squeezed her eyes, preparing to be ripped apart by an explosion, but nothing came.

"Perfectly executed." Kikyou grinned. "Now come to my office and show me this seal of yours."

-

"Hmmmm…" Satori Kikyou squinted at the reconstruction of Naruto's seal. Sakura peered at the old woman over a cup of tea, hoping her memory had served well.

"Where did you find this?" Kikyou inquired. Sakura bit her cup, and glared at Kikyou suspiciously. How much could she tell her without giving them away…?

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone." Kikyou said as though reading Sakura's mind.

"It's… on my friend's stomach." Sakura ventured. Kikyou didn't seem surprised.

"Well, it's defiantly the Hakke style…" Kikyou set the diagram down on her desk. "You were right in thinking that it's a powerful seal, but what it contains is much more powerful. I could not begin to describe it."

Sakura latched on to every word.

"The person who performed this seal was a genius; it's designed so that the power of your friend and the power within him merge as necessary… otherwise, the power would merely devour your friend."

"So, the seal is protecting him… but why is there something powerful inside of him?"

"There are only two reasons people perform seals: education and necessity, and this is not a seal based on education."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because, in exchange, the sealer gave up his life."

Sakura nearly choked on her tea.

"Are you serious?!"

Kikyou nodded.

"How old is your friend?"

"Um… 14. Why?"

"This seal is so strong that it could only be preformed on a newborn child, whose umbilical cord had been freshly cut."

"So… 14 years ago something was sealed into my friend. What does that have to do with anything?"

"You are aware of The Law of Conservation of Energy?"

"Of course. That energy cannot be created or destroyed, only turned into something else."

"Precisely, meaning that this large power within your friend did not merely generate out of thin air."

"It must've shown up and was sealed into my friend because of necessity… probably because it was too dangerous!"

"Dangerous enough for someone to give his life for it."

"Well, then… if it was that bad, then someone must have seen it, right? Someone other than the sealer must have noticed it too. People must've died fighting against it."

Kikyou smiled.

"Now you're getting somewhere!"

"But I can't think of anything like that that happened 14 years ago… I don't remember learning about anything being sealed away."

"Maybe you did," Kikyou picked up a cup of tea and stirred it with a small spoon, "but all you really heard was a cover up."

Sakura gave Kikyou a confused look.

"Let me give you a hint." Kikyou smiled, "When you came here two weeks ago, did your friend come with you?"

"Yes."

"Was he the one who threw up on the cement out front?"

"Yeah…?"

"You did see the pattern on the concrete right? Well, that's not just for show. Hundreds of years ago when demons ran rampant across this country, this was a school of seals that specialized in sealing away demons. The demons didn't like this and attacked often, so a barrier was set up around the school. That seal completely halts the movement of anything from a B-rank demon and below; they should not even be able to cross that line."

"What?"

Kikyou laughed.

"Well, if you still don't get it, the answer is shut in a mirror given to your friend recently."

"What? You know what the answer is?! Why won't you tell me!?"

"Because…" Kikyou walked over to Sakura and tapped her on the nose. "I have given you all the pieces. It is your job to seal them together in a way that won't blow you up…"

-

Sakura sighed as she walked home, large scroll stuck to her back, the useless extra sutras in her pocket, the many torturous questions beating at her mind. The street lamps flickered on in the dim light. She felt so drained, yet so alive. The ends of her mystery swung before and her heart rejoiced while her gut cried out in foreboding. Did she really want to know what Naruto carried around?

_Yes, you need to know so you can help him._

_But if he hasn't told me already, maybe he doesn't want me to know._

_But you're his friend, right!? You have an obligation to help him. "Those who don't care about their companions are worse than trash."_

_Would I really be helping him if I knew?_

_Of course, he doesn't need to fight his inner demons alone. There's what friends are for._

_Inner demons…_

Sakura's foot caught on a stray NinCola can. She grabbed a fence for support. She heard something metallic hit the ground.

_I need to be more careful…_ She thought as she turned back to pick up whatever it was that fell.

The eerie glow from the street light glinted off the object as Sakura bent and touched the shining instrument. She held it up and noticed it was Ino's kunai.

_I thought I left you in my backpack._ Sakura thought as she continued on her way. Her thumb rubbed the pink string around the handle and she turned it over. The clean, polished surface glimmered back at her.

_That Ino and her psycho cleaning habits… What's this?_

Sakura felt something etched into the iron. She turned it over again and noticed a small inscription along the kunai's edge.

"'Yamanaka Ino'" _Why didn't I see this before?_

Sakura held it up to the light and looked at her pallid face staring back at her. She cringed as she tried to flick flakes of blood off her cheeks. Suddenly, Sakura froze. Her eyes widen as revelation hit her like a mallet.

_INSCRIPTIONS IN A KNIFE!?_

She swallowed dryly.

_Naruto brought home a sword… and on it was…_

Sakura began to run toward the apartment, every muscle in her body pulsated with her heartbeat.

_N-no… it can't be! It… was killed! Yondaime… _

She rounded a corner. Five figures blurred in her vision.

"Hey baby!" The middle one called out as she charged toward them. "Give us a toll and we won't hurt cha!"

"Get out of my way!" Sakura's foot landed squarely in the guy's face. He flew a hundred feet down the street and smashed into a dumpster. Trash exploded with the force of a monster, but Sakura didn't stay for the fireworks. She dashed down another street and slid into the apartment building. She thundered up the steps and threw open their door, not bothering to unlock it. The room yawned at her, beckoning her inside like a witch to a poisoned apple. Sakura gingerly stepped inside. Her knees threatened to buckle underneath her and her stomach felt like putty. She slowly drew near Naruto's belongings as though approaching a poisonous snake.

Sakura knelt down next to the yellow backpack and reached toward his sword. She swallowed hard as her trembling hand grasped the handle. She drew the blade closer and closed her eyes at the sight of the sheath's gold pattern; her heart burned to look at it. Slowly, she withdrew the blade, which clattered as she drew it with shaking hands.

Sakura read the label, embossed by its picture, and whispered her dread into the night.

"'Kyuubi.'"

* * *

Author's Note: MWAHAHAHAHAHA! I have created a monster! Can you taste the suspence!? I'm so evil! (although... this was kinda a crappy chapter, if I do say so myself...) Don't worry, I'll go over exaclty why Naruto's sword is home next chapter, along with the conclusion of Sakura's revelations. As always, I'd like to thank everyone who reads this fic, not just the reviewers, although they hold a bigger chunk of my heart. I'd again like to apologize for characters being out of character; I'm not Kishimoto, it's artistic interpretation. :)

Next Chapter: Sakura's revelations meet Naruto's insecurities!


	22. Undone

**Chapter 22: Undone**

Naruto groaned. He felt like the living dead. Each bone in his body rebelled against his pace.

_I can't believe I left my sword at home._ Naruto cursed as he made his way back._ That bastard, Ronoa-jisan! He didn't have to make me drink a gallon of that nasty tea crap._

"At least the day can't get any worse." He muttered as he clambered up the stairs.

He approached the landing to the apartment and reached for the doorknob. His hand grasped nothing and he looked up to see the door flung to the side and crumpled upon the ground, as though it had made some monster angry.

Naruto peered inside.

"I'm home… Sorry I'm late…."

The room seemed dirtier than usual, dark and dank, like a crime scene. Sakura sat, her back to him, her graceful hair cascading over pale shoulders, in front of his yellow backpack. His sword, unsheathed, lay in her hands like a dead bird. She sat deathly still, as though someone had stabbed her, and didn't turn to look as Naruto stepped over the threshold.

He slowly crossed the room in concern.

"Sakura-chan…?"

"Don't come any closer." Her voice echoed from the veil of her pink hair.

Naruto froze. He'd heard that tone of voice before, from the mouths of protective mothers yelling at him when he was younger, from grandmothers he'd tried to help on the street, from nearly ever civilian in Konoha when he'd accidentally wandered into their yard to catch a stray butterfly.

"Wh-what?" Naruto gulped. A condensed mixture of fear and pain crept into his chest. Why? Why was she acting so cold?

"Stay where you are." She whispered.

Naruto bit his bottom lip.

"Sakura-chan."

"Naruto… I know…" She stammered roughly as though trying to figure out the right words to say. "I know… about… Kyuubi."

Naruto breath got stuck in his throat.

"Wh-what..?" He didn't dare breathe. He didn't dare blink. His ears had deceived him. She couldn't know! How could she know!? She must have said something else. His pulsating heart must have deafened his hearing.

"Kyuubi. I know he's inside of you." She whispered.

The fear and pain welling up in his chest rose like a bubble up his throat and Naruto choked on it. He put a hand over his chest where the swirling abyss of confusion, hurt and panic crushed his heart.

"H-how…" He stuttered aimlessly. His control over his mouth seemed distant. A million seamless questions scurried across him mind. Who? What? When? How? But mostly…

"Why?" His voice came like the exhaling of breath.

Naruto's eyes burned. Tears threatened to spill forth like an endless river. Sakura's cold shoulder glared at him like a judge, an executioner, as it peered at him from beneath her pink hair.

_No… NO!_

Naruto pivoted around and dashed out the door, his footsteps echoing down the stairs.

-

Sasuke swung his bartender's shirt nonchalantly as he meandered home. Casually, he looked around. The thugs usually attacked him right before the next turn, but they were nowhere to be found. Sasuke couldn't even sense a fighting intent in the air.

A metallic clatter echoed through the still ghetto as Sasuke's foot hit a NinCola can. He casually hopped around it and heard a louder clatter from further down the road. Curiously, Sasuke continued down the path until he noticed four of the thugs shifting through a heap of trash.

"Hold on, Ku! We'll getcha out!" the small one was saying.

Filth littered the streets. The large gangster pulled a horrible disfigured dumpster to the side; it looked like it had been sumo-plowed by a wrestler made of lead.

Gingerly, two of the thugs lifted their leader out of the heap. As he approached casually, Sasuke noticed a large, red foot print plastered over his face and a horribly, bloody, disfigured nose.

"Ugh… I'm covered in mustard." He muttered as they dragged him out. He noticed Sasuke staring at them. "Hey you! Don't think this is over! This is only a minor set back! We'll kick your ass tomorrow."

"What happened here?" Sasuke inquired.

"Some bitch…"

It was all Sasuke needed.

_This is Sakura's work, but why…_

Sasuke sense something wrong in the air.

"Hey! I'm not done with you!" The leader screeched as Sasuke turned the corner.

A thousand possibilities ran through Sasuke's mind.

_It's probably nothing_, He thought. _They were probably just harassing her._ But he couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.

The quick thud of hasty footsteps cracked Sasuke's train of thought. He looked up. A bowed yellow head came charging down the street.

_Naruto?!_

Sasuke puzzled at this as Naruto came bolting at him, his pace unchanging. Their shoulders collided as Naruto pushed past. Sasuke saw a brief glimpse of Naruto's bowed face; teeth gritted, eyes squinted, a tortured look.

Sasuke and Naruto rebounded off each other. The blonde didn't even look up as he recovered from the blow and continued to run.

"Naruto!" Sasuke cried at his back, but Naruto just disappeared into the dark.

Sasuke gritted his teeth and ran back to the apartment, the clear epicenter for all this trauma.

He dashed through the main door and up the stairs, where he found their door unhinged and discarded. Sasuke bolted through the door and found Sakura on her knees before Naruto's things.

"Sakura!"

She didn't answer. Sasuke grabbed her pale shoulder and roughly pulled her around.

"Saku-"

Sakura looked up at him. Large tears were pouring out of her wide green eyes and rolling down the curves of her red cheeks. She hiccupped and sniffled.

"I'm such a horrible person." Sakura sniffled, looking at the floor. "I've been so mean. And look, now I've got blood all over his sword." Sakura held up the blade in her hands. She must've squeezed it too tightly, because her palms were bleeding. Bright red blood smeared itself over the katana's glimmering edges.

"What happened?" Sasuke knelt down beside her, still panting from his frantic journey.

Sakura hiccupped again and couldn't speak through her tears. She held up the hilt of the sword for Sasuke to see.

"You found out about Kyuubi."

"Eh? You know about it too!" Sakura looked down again. "He told you but he didn't tell me… He really _does_ hate me…"

Sasuke sighed.

"Of course, he didn't tell me. Orochimaru gave me a full explanation while I was away."

"Oh, I see."

"You really think he hates you?"

Sakura snapped up.

"Well, of course, I was so mean to him when we were younger! Everyone was and I just followed their lead like a blind idiot! I didn't even occur to me why no one liked him. It must have been so hard for him… I could never understand… what it's like." Sakura hiccupped again. "When I told him, he must've been so mad; he just ran out. I'm such an idiot. He probably hates me."

Sasuke blinked at her a few times.

"So, let me get this straight. You don't hate him?"

Sakura looked up in surprise.

"No, why would I do that?"

"Nearly everyone else who knows does. That's why he didn't want to tell you. He didn't want you to hate him."

"How could I hate him?! After all that he's been through… All this time, since the day he was born,… he's been a hero," Sakura looked distant, "and I didn't even know."

"Well, don't tell me! Tell him!" Sasuke cried pointing at the door.

Sakura stopped crying and blinked a couple times.

"Go!"

"H-hai!" Sakura jumped up, not bothering to mend her bleeding hands. She wiped her eyes on the back of her wrist and dashed out the door.

Sasuke listened to her footsteps disappear down the stairs and fell back against the floor.

"I am surrounded by idiots."

-

Naruto ran. He didn't even care where he was going, he just went. He had to get away. He didn't want to hear Sakura say she hated him. It would tear him apart. It had taken them so long to become friends, so long for him to be acknowledged by her, and it would all be gone in one fell swoop. He didn't want to hear it, but he knew, deep inside, that it had to be the truth. No one could love a monster.

Naruto dashed through cobblestone streets, passing little shops as they closed for the night. Proprietors stared curiously at him as he ran by, but Naruto didn't care. He didn't care that his muscles ached from a days worth of training, he didn't care that his stomach grumbled from emptiness; he just ran.

_Idiot, why are you running away? The Great Naruto, the soon-to-be greatest Hokage ever, doesn't run away from anything!_

_I don't want to hear her say she hates me…_

_Running away never solved anything! You can't always run away from your problems._

_I don't! but I don't know how to deal with this one. You can't fight your way through things like this…_

Naruto cringed

… _I'm… I'm not strong enough to deal with this!_

Naruto found himself in the park, a tree and pond covered area in the center on Sorano. The cherry trees whistled it the humidity and fireflies buzzed around like comets. Naruto heaved and leaned against a bench. His mind still wanted to run, but his body refused. The muscles of his legs burned and beads of sweat covered his skin, too much heat for the summertime warmth.

Naruto continued to walk forward. When the path curved, he didn't follow; he stepped right into the pond. The cold water came like a blessing to his sore legs and he pushed further into the pool, until he was waist deep in water.

Naruto looked up into the sky. The stars winked back at him and the moon seemed ten times larger than normal. Its brilliant, crème-colored light danced off the top of the water as it rippled around Naruto's hips.

It was under a sky like this that Naruto had caught Sakura singing, practicing to beat Ino on Sea Breeze Island, under a moon like this when they first slept in the same room, in Tazuna's house when the three of them had first began their excursion. Naruto remembered the magical way the moonlight bounced off her face, how radiant she looked draped in it. Naruto pined at how he may never again see her in the same light, or in any other kind of light for that matter. She would never want to see him again.

Naruto wanted to cry. He wanted it to rain so no one would notice. Pain ate away at his heart, like a ripe fruit to a hungry animal.

"Naruto!" Sakura's voice echoed from behind him. The clear tone erupted through Naruto's thoughts. He froze in the cold water.

_What is she doing here? Did she follow me? Doesn't she hate me?!_

A large ripple swept passed him, indicating Sakura had entered the water. The ripples continued as she drew nearer and suddenly stopped.

"Naruto…" She whispered. The muscles in Naruto back tightened; she was so close he could almost feel her breath on the back of his neck. His heart beat so wildly against his chest he grew afraid that she might hear it. He began to move away. Whatever she had to say, he didn't want to hear it.

"Naruto, wait! Please let me explain." He voice echoed with urgency, but not anger, so he stopped

"I saw the seal on the boat..." Her voice quavered like the ripples on the pond,"...and I didn't know what it was. I thought it was something like ...Sasuke's curse, that it was hurting you....I just wanted to help…"

A firefly brushed across Naruto's face and he slowly turned around to face her. The moonlight lathered her hair in a soft glow and even in the monotone glow, he could she the stains on her face from tears.

"You… don't hate me?"

"Stupid, of course not. Why would I?" She whispered.

He looked at the water. His pallid moonlit reflection looked back at him like death.

"Everyone else does..."

"Well, everyone else is an idiot. I was too… but now you're one of my best friends, Naruto…"

She placed her hands on his chest. Naruto blushed.

"… I could… never hate…"

_What's this?! A confession of love!?_ Naruto squealed to himself.

"Ugh…" Sakura groaned as placed her forehead against him.

Naruto turned even redder, his heart beating wildly beneath his flesh.

"Oh, Sakura-chan!" He cried as he embraced her tightly. She didn't respond or move.

"Eh? Sakura-chan?"

No response.

"Sakura-chan!!"

-

Sasuke stood back from the door and admired his handiwork. The crumpled, battered door swung loosely from its hinges, but it would keep the neighbors out, a full half hours worth of work.

_Geez,_ Sasuke muttered to himself, _they've been gone a long time. Did Naruto run all the way back to Konoha or something!?_

The door flew open with a force that ripped it off its frail hinges.

A vein throbbed in Sasuke's forehead as he watched the last thirty minutes' work be thrown aside like three-day-old fish. He looked up to see Naruto standing in the doorway, soaking wet, Sakura on his back, bloody palm prints decorating his yellow shirt.

"Sasuke!" He cried breathlessly. "Sakura-chan is dead!"

* * *

Author's Note: The evilness continues! MWAHAHAHAHA! I bet no one saw that coming... :3 Anyway, this was probably the hardest chapter to construct. I kept screwing it up, so I'd like to extend a warm thank you to my friends at H&E NaruSaku board for all their support and TLC! Thanks guys! and of course, I'd like to thank the readers.. but you know I love ya! :) 

About "Kikyou": I was going to save this speech until the end of the arc, but since someone brought it up, I might as well. "Satori Kikyou" is a direct referenece to Inu Yasha, plain and simple. She is, however, not _the_ Kikyou, because this is not a crossover fic. I named her that because I wanted to portray a sense of both age, wisdom and beauty, and any fan of InuYasha (whether you like Kikyou or not) agrees that she has these attributes. Her surname "Satori" means "enlightenment" which was her initial purpose in the plot of my fic. I name mostly all my characters in this fashion; although their names are not always tied to their personality, but mostly to their significance in the story. So, in essense, if you know Japanese a little, you probably already know what Sasuke was suppose to find. :X

About "Big Words": My brother read my story recently and he kept asking me what words meant. I don't mean to put in words people don't understand, this is just how I talk. :( So if you have any questions relating to my vocabulary, here's a neat trick. :) Go to Google and run a search for "define:word" and Google will look up "word" and give you multiple definitions. Ex. If you were looking up "ardvark". Type in define:ardvark and Google will give you the answer. I just found this out recently; it's pretty nifty. :)

Next Chapter: Is Sakura really dead!? Naruto takes on Ronoa!


	23. Remedy

**Chapter 23: Remedy**

Sakura opened her eyes and winced as the brilliant flare of light that greeted her. Her head felt like a fish bowl, heavy with little creatures bobbing around inside it. Her right hand felt like lead as she clumsily lifted it to block the sun. Its shadow across her face seemed twice the normal size of a hand and she blearily drew the mass in to focus to realize, somewhat to her amusement, her hand was covered in enough bandages that her hand looked like a mitten.

_What happened? _

The night before seemed more out of focus than Sakura's vision. It slowly came back to her like a long lost friend. Kyuubi, the pond, the moonlight, Naruto's ashen face all swam into her memory.

The sickening sense of stomach acid bubbling into her esophagus made Sakura gag. She squinted into the bleary pale light around her and realized she was covered in Naruto's yellow sleeping bag, Sasuke's blue one pillowed under her head. Sakura weakly pulled the yellow comforter over her nose. She hadn't ruined it; it still smelled like Naruto, a seasoned smell, like ramen. It went very well with Sasuke's, which smelled sweeter, like week-old cologne. Sakura giggled. Salt and sugar; complete opposites that are at their best when mixed together.

"You're awake." A passive voice resounded from somewhere to her right.

"Sasuke…" Sakura groaned. He voice leapt from her throat as though she hadn't used it in years, hoarse and scaly.

"You gave us a heart attack, you know." Sasuke muttered, annoyed. Sakura's arms shook as she propped herself up on her elbows. She felt a wall behind her and leaned against it. Her head spun like water in a cup.

"Sorry, sorry…" She put a hand on her clammy forehead. Her brain settled back into place and she looked around the room. Sasuke stood against the wall by the window. He looked abnormally disheveled and he oozed of fatigue.

Something squirmed on Sakura's right. Sakura looked down and saw Naruto, curled up on the floor beside her. He lay bathed in the red, orange glow of the dawn; bright rays permeated his skin and lathered him in a cloud-like glow. His hand squeezed the edge of the sleeping bag covering her and he seemed to recede ten years in age.

_Cute…_ Sakura grinned to herself.

"Don't wake him up." Sasuke grumbled. "He finally went to sleep. He was up all night worrying about you, that idiot."

Sakura brushed her fingers over his blonde hair affectionately.

"What happened last night?"

Sasuke's forehead throbbed with the memories of the past night. They peeled like a scab he longed to flick away and be rid of.

_Eight hours earlier…_

"What!? What do you mean 'Sakura's dead'?!" Sasuke hollered.

Naruto panted and hopped into the room. He swallowed hard and his eyes spun in perplexity. He wheezed in a combination of fear and confusion, globular tears running down his face.

"Meandsakurachanweretalkinginthispondandshesaidshewasntmadatmeandthenshejustkindoffelloverandherhandswerebleedingandshegotreallycold-!!!"

"Slow down!" Sasuke hissed. "I can't understand a word your saying!"

Naruto heaved some more, but rendered unable to speak in proper sentences. Sasuke gritted his teeth and grabbed Sakura's hand. The cold, clammy skin sent shivers up Sasuke's spine and the enormous bruise around the bleeding scar on her palm made him feel sick. Gingerly, Sasuke pressed his finger on her wrist. He heard felt a sound, a swift beat of a heart, but realized it was his own; Sakura's pulse remained empty. Sasuke's mind raced, all the worst possible conclusions filled his mind, when a soft thump sang through Sakura's vein.

"You idiot, Naruto! She's not dead!" He berated.

"Wha..? But I checked her pulse too! And there was nothing!" Naruto cried.

"Well, you obviously didn't check it long enough. She has a pulse, but her blood pressure is extremely low… Um…" Sasuke looked around himself frantically and moved toward Sakura's belongings. He picked up her sleeping bag, untied it and laid it out on the ground.

"Here, set her down." Sasuke commanded.

Naruto complied and dipped Sakura's cold, limp form on to her sleeping bag. She looked positively colorless against the bright red cushioning, completely still except for the gentle rise of her chest every so often.

"Look dumbass." Sasuke pointed down at her. "She's breathing. How could you mistake her for dead?"

"Shut the hell up! It's dark outside; I couldn't tell!"

"Yet you carried her all the way home on your back and never noticed…" Sasuke grumbled.

"What was that!?"

"Nothing." Sasuke walked over to the discarded door and hefted it off the ground. Gingerly, he placed it back in the frame, vowing to fix it later.

Naruto sank to his knees beside Sakura and carefully reached out to touch her hand. The cold, clamminess of her skin made his heart burn. Naruto didn't care what Sasuke said; Sakura looked dead, and that was all it took to make him hiccup tears of shameless guilt.

"If she's not dead, why is she so pale?" Naruto wondered aloud as Sasuke returned from his door escapade and sat on Sakura's other side.

"I'm not a doctor." He muttered.

"Well, we have to do something besides sit here." Naruto screeched.

"There isn't much we can do without knowing what's wrong with her."

"Doncha think we should fix her hands up? They're still bleeding!"

Sasuke rubbed his chin.

"I don't know. I vaguely remember Iruka-sensei saying something about letting wounds bleed if a person is poisoned…"

"Eh?! You think someone poisoned Sakura-chan!?"

"It's very possible; especially if they found out she's from Fire Country…" Sasuke thought about the possibility, and then poked himself in the forehead with his index finger.

"What?" Naruto cocked his quizzically.

"No, I don't think that's possible."

"Why not?"

"Sakura is a medic-nin. A large part of medic jutsu is mixing medicines and developing immunities to toxins. Not to mention, she was trained by Godaime-sama, one of the best apothecaries in the world, I doubt anyone would have been able to poison Sakura."

"Then what's wrong with her?!"

A vein pulsated in Sasuke's temple. Each question dug deeper into his brain like screws, adding to his stressed frontal lobe.

"How the hell should I know?!" He snapped.

"Well, I don't have a clue! You're supposed to be the smart one! You're the one who got the one who always got the highest grades at the academy!"

"Yeah, until my brother killed my family and I stopped caring about junk like practical Ninjutsu or First Aid!"

"You're a dumbass!"

"_You're_ the dumbass! You never got good grades in anything!"

"Shut the hell up! I'm not an idiot!"

"Then you figure out what's wrong with her if you're so smart!"

The flames of Naruto's rage diminished like a candle in the wind, replaced by unbridled panic.

"Um…" He stuttered, his mind flipping through everything he knew.

Sasuke smirked. _Not so easy is it?_

Naruto rubbed his chin and gave Sakura a long sideways glance. Suddenly, he shot up and patted his fist upright into his palm.

"I know!" He announced. "We should give her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation!"

Sasuke nearly fell over.

"W-what!?"

"I shall administer it." Naruto pulled on the collar of his shirt, as his face heated dramatically. He slowly bent over Sakura. His breath danced across her feather-like eye lashes. Naruto swallowed hard, squeezed his eyes shut and lower his mouth toward hers. His lips tingled with anticipation; his mind spun with ideas he'd had since he'd met her: What would it feel like? "Soft like a pillow and fresh like a lemon?" What would she taste like?

Something warm, moist and salty hit his lips and smashed like a rotten fruit against his face. Naruto was no expert, but this was like no kiss he'd ever had before, (even though he'd only had one in his lifetime).

Naruto opened his eyes and found himself smooching Sasuke's hand. He leapt back in disgust, wiping his lips.

"What the hell?!"

Sasuke smeared his defile hand over his pant leg.

"You retard." His face looked like a tomato. "T-there's nothing wrong with her respiratory system. She's breathing just fine."

Naruto eyed him carefully.

"Then what the hell is wrong with her?!"

"You've asked me that three times now!"

"Well, we should at least wrap her hands. She may get an infection if we don't. Maybe there's something n her stuff that can help us." Naruto began to crawl toward Sakura's pack.

Sasuke blinked and gawked at Naruto for a moment.

"Did you just say something intelligent?"

"Don't treat me like an idiot!" Naruto grasped Sakura's red bag and pulled it toward him. He pulled the duffel string open and paused. He felt so dirty going through Sakura's things, Icha Icha Paradise dirty. Naruto bit his lip a plunged his hand into the pack and prayed he wouldn't pull out something he'd regret touching, although a secret part of him hoped he would.

He began to pull out several things: bottles of various sizes, a plastic cylinder of senbon, sterilized needles and thread, a small pack of mysterious paper rectangles, until he, at last, pulled out his prey.

Naruto threw a spool of bandage to Sasuke and the two began work on Sakura's hands, Naruto on her right, Sasuke on her left. Naruto winced as he pulled the white cloth over the purple discolored wound.

"Sasuke, why do you think her hands are all bruised looking?"

Sasuke peered closer at Sakura's hand in his.

"I don't know… They were clean cuts; she shouldn't be bruising. She's not anemic, and these cuts aren't large enough to cause any major blood loss."

"Maybe she's been summoning a lot."

"What makes you say that?"

Naruto held up Sakura's hand for Sasuke to see. Her index finger held a fresh scab; black tissue crusted over the small, round laceration.

Sasuke looked at his own right hand and then at his left. While his right hand contained no scars, a small bite mark resided on the middle finger in his right hand.

Summoning frogs, snakes, and slugs required different things. Naruto only need to draw blood from his finger (typically, his thumb) and slam it against the ground after making the required seals. Sasuke, on the other hand, need to draw a line down the inside of his forearm in blood. He found it easiest to use his left middle finger to do this, hence the scar. Sakura need to the draw a line down the back of her forearm, something she did with her left thumb.

Sasuke looked down at Sakura's pale hand in his. The tiny scar on her thumb glowed through the whiteness of her skin. The discoloration was small; the last time she summoned was months ago, during their fight with Orochimaru.

Then why did she have a fresh cut on her right index finger?

Sasuke put down the bandage wrap and looked cautiously over at the large scroll discarded on the floor. It glared menacingly at him as though taunting him with its secrets. The words "Advanced Bloodline Binding Seal" tempted him like a forbidden fruit. How could lines on the ground contest with his Sharingan?

Above this floated the fear the Sakura had practiced the seal, had used her blood on a technique deliberately designed to disable him, so much blood that she nearly killed herself. Was she that desperate to find a way around the Sharingan eye?

Sasuke bit down hard on his apprehensions, leaned over and put his hand on the large scroll.

"Eh? What are you doing?" Naruto looked up from the hand that had become a mitten thanks to his wrapping.

"I… have a hunch…" Sasuke rolled the scroll toward him and awkwardly propped in upright. Carefully, he peeled back the paper and began to read aloud:

"This seal requires approx. 4 pints of blood and, therefore, is not intended to produce in one sitting if being produce alone.'"

"'Four pints'?" Naruto scratched his chin. "Is that a lot?"

"I think so." Sasuke's mouth moved on its own. His mind seemed numb and distant.

Naruto spoke Sasuke's thoughts, driving a stake of pain and confusion further into his heart.

"Why do you think Sakura-chan is learning the Bloodline Binding Seal?"

"I… don't know…." Sasuke didn't even try to think about it; his mind was too busy feeling betrayed and rejected. "Maybe she…"

"No, you're wrong."

Sasuke looked up, bewildered.

"What?"

"I know what you're thinking. You think Sakura-chan's out to get you. And you're wrong. Sakura-chan would never do something like that." Naruto glared menacingly over Sakura's body and directly into Sasuke's eyes.

"What makes you so sure? Anything is possible." Sasuke looked off to the side.

"I can't believe you! How can you say something like that!?"

"Well, it's not unreasonable!"

"Sakura-chan is our friend. She would never try and hurt either of us!"

"Then how do you explain the seal and Sakura's blood loss!?"

"Well… well... maybe they're for something else! It's probably just a big misunderstanding! I thought she hated me too, but I was wrong! Stop jumping to stupid conclusions!"

-

"Well?"

Sakura's voice transcended through Sasuke's thoughts.

"Huh?"

She looked at him sideways.

"What happened?"

"Nothing." Sasuke looked out the grimy window once more, but the faint yellow sky revealed nothing. He cursed his habit of waking up at dawn. Sasuke and Naruto had argued a little more but, in the end, Sasuke had fallen asleep, something Naruto didn't do until after Sasuke had risen at dawn.

"Really?" Sakura mumbled half to herself. "Surprising… Hey could you pass me that water bottle?"

Sasuke looked up and craned around until his gaze fixated on the small canteen on the floor. He moved carefully around Sakura's sickbed and snatched it up off the floor. He carefully held the clear bottle up and glared at the label.

The transparent plastic had been wrinkled white in some places and the crackled rips of wear-'n'-tear cascaded themselves across the faded brand name, Aqua no Jutsu Natural Spring Water (from the makers of NinCola), like roads on a map.

The label may have said "Spring Water" but the murky substance could have been pond sludge or vomit. The brown liquid swirled grotesquely in the clear plastic and would have made even the largest buffet nut sick.

Sasuke quickly passed it off to Sakura, who took it and unscrewed the cap. Sasuke winced as she put the bottle against her lips and poured some of the swill down her throat.

"Ugh…" Sakura groaned as her tongue savored the flavor and she put a palm to her forehead. Sasuke looked horrified. Sakura chuckled out of spite.

"It's a red blood cell regeneration serum." She explained to his unasked question.

She gave a playfully stern look.

"You did know that's what was wrong with me, right?"

"Yeah…" Sasuke moved solemnly back to the window and squinted at the dawn.

"Well, next time, you should elevate my legs above the level of my heart. It sends most of the necessary blood to more important… Oi, are you listening to me?"

Sasuke didn't respond. His wife-beater undershirt clung to ridges in his back with sweat and the muscles in his neck flexed from behind the small ponytail Sakura had given him when they first reached Sorano.

"Sasuke..?" Sakura ventured, a nervous chill running through her as she sat cast in his shadow.

"Sakura." He whispered as he continued to stare into the dawn. "Why… why were you learning the Advanced Bloodline Binding Seal?"

The question hung in the air like a suicide. Sakura blinked curiously for a moment and pulled her hand across her hair.

"Well… honestly, I don't know."

Sasuke wheeled around. Of all the answers in the world, this was one he least expected.

"What?"

"Well… In exchange for teaching me about Naruto's seal, Satori Kikyou said I needed to prove myself by learning this one. But I don't really know why she chose this particular seal. I mean, it's a hard seal, but it didn't have to be one. I suppose it doesn't really matter. She didn't teach me all that much about Naruto's seal anyway."

Sasuke blinked at Sakura for a moment. The answer held such simplicity, he found it hard to disbelieve.

"Really?" He asked anyway.

Sakura nodded as she ran her hand over her head again. The sickly dizziness had begun to fade from her temple.

Sasuke looked solemnly at the ground. He felt like an idiot for doubting her. Sasuke looked at Naruto's sleeping form on Sakura's other side. The blonde mumbled something incoherent and placed his hand on Sakura's leg squeezing the sleeping bag like a child does to a baby blanket.

Sakura smiled warmly down at him and ran her fingers through his hair.

Sasuke sighed in defeat. He walked to the wall, leaned wearily against it and slid down it, so he was sitting next to Sakura.

"What?" She blinked curiously at him.

Sasuke looked passively at the floor.

"I'm… sorry..."

Sakura looked at him, bewildered and wide-eyed.

"What for?"

Sasuke leaned his head against the wall and let it fall heavily to the side, so it almost rested on Sakura's shoulder.

"Nothing." He muttered.

Sakura listened as Sasuke's breathing grew regular and long winded. She gently pet Naruto's head as she placed hers against Sasuke's.

"Idiot. You thought I was trying to attack you, right?"

Sasuke didn't answer from his sleep and the sun slowly began to brighten the room as it reached into the sky.

* * *

Author's Notes: Firstly, I'd like to apologize for this chapter taking so long. I was away for a while... but now I'm back!! WOOHOO! and you guys didn't really think I was going to kill off Sakura (so soon), did you? :P This section took a little longer than I anticipated (I kind of wanted to get to the battle... it'll have to wait until next chapter), which can only mean one thing: I am getting better as a writer! With a closer attention to detail and description, paragraphs are getting longer, which might not be good in this senario.(The story's long enough. I don't need it to be any longer than it is).  
A little about this chapter: This chapter was spawned by partly by One Piece, but I won't spoil it for anyone by telling you why. I just thought it would be cool to see what would happen if Sakura was incapacitated and Naruto and Sasuke were left to the medcinal work. I figured all they would do is argue and beat each other up... it was a pretty wild idea, so I sort of toned it down and stuck it in the story. At least it fits well!

One a side note, all that info I got about summoning I took from the manga, so don't sue me! and DO NOT RELY ON THIS AS A MEDICAL TEXT. I know nothing about medicine! Nothing!!!!!! On that note, I'd like to thank YahooMedicine for their easy-to-use database... Great, know I'm doing research... (and how corny is "Aqua no Jutsu"? I'm really sinking to a low... -.-)

Next Chapter: A Battle! I promise! Naruto's final test!


	24. Conquest

**Chapter 24: Conquest**

After a five hour nap, Naruto and Sasuke weren't at 100 percent, but they could function well enough. Sasuke made a crazy dash to work and Naruto ditched Ronoa's training session.

"All we do is fight and then he kicks my ass!" He complained as he helped Sakura scrub the blood stains from his shirt. "That's not training; it's abuse! I'd be better off training on my own."

With Naruto's shirt still wet, Sakura lead him to the abandoned Sorano Fuuka training ground, to begin to help him with his training.

"Okay, Naruto. Show me what you've got!" Sakura called across the sixty feet of open space between them. On the other side, Naruto squeezed the hilt of his sword nervously.

"Sakura-chan, are you sure about this? You haven't fully recovered yet!"

"Stupid. What the hell do you know about Medic Jutsu!? Stop worrying so much! Besides, if you don't get that necklace back, we'll never be able to leave this town!"

Sakura reached into a bag of empty NinCola cans she'd scrounged from the streets around their flat and pulled one out. Naruto gulped slightly as, across the granite slab, she tossed the can up into the air and caught it again.

"Now when I throw this at you, I want you to hit it. That's all. Understand?"

Naruto shifted his feet restlessly on the ground.

Sakura casually tossed the aluminum can at him, but a casual toss by Sakura was just as powerful as a full throttle pitch by normal people. The can blazed through the air.

Naruto squeezed his eyes shut, lifted his sword over his head and swiped it down in a perfect arc. Steel sliced cleanly through the weak can. Each half clattered to the stone on either side of him.

Naruto opened his eyes, noticed the bits of can and cheered.

"Yeah!!! Look Sakura-chan, I did it!"

Sakura gawked blankly at him for a moment. She hadn't expected this; maybe a swing-and-miss or a slight dent, but he cut the can in half. He said Ronoa-sama wasn't training him, yet he managed to complete this task perfectly… then was this talent or just dumb luck…?

Without responding, Sakura picked up another can and tossed it, this time slightly to his left. Naruto automatically repositioned himself, as if he'd been doing it for years, and sliced the can again.

"Alright!!!"

A vein throbbed in Sakura's forehead. She was a doctor; things that made no sense ticked her off, because, practically it meant she'd failed somewhere in her method. Why was he so damn good? Sakura snatched up a third can from the bag and hurled it with all her might. The aluminum chunk shot from her throw like a rocket. The air cracked in its wake and broke into a thousand pieces, sending huge blasts of wind trailing behind the NinCola bullet. The randomly scattered leaves didn't have a chance.

With no time to think, Naruto squeezed his eyes shut raised the katana and brought it down as hard as he could, releasing an unbridled yell.

The sword collided with the can. Sparks flew. For a moment, the can contested with the blade, pushing against it with full force, its generated wind tearing at Naruto like a savage beast. But in the end, steel broke through. The two halves shot by Naruto, rudely tossing his hair and sent the waves of his T-shirt into a frenzy. Two simultaneous, loud cracks erupted behind him as each piece collided with its own tree, sending woodchips flying and lodging themselves into the bark like nails.

Naruto turned around to view the damage. He let out a whoop of joy at his accomplishment.

"Hell yeah!!" Naruto cried as he began to turn back around. "Sakura-chan, did you see-?!"

Sakura's foot slammed into Naruto's face. He flew about ten feet, ricocheted off the granite platform and struck his own tree. Naruto groaned as he slid down the trunk and collapsed into a huddled mass on the earthen ground, clutching his face. He shot a glare up at Sakura who stood, shadowed by anger, on the platform.

"What the hell was that for?!"

"You liar!" Sakura pointed an accusing finger at him. "You said Ronoa-sama didn't train you!"

"He didn't!!"

"Then how do you explain this!?" Sakura held up one of the can halves.

"I dunno! I just have skills!"

"No way! You're a liar and you know it!"

"I swear, all Ronoa-jisan did was beat me up and feed me that nasty tea!"

Sakura glared down at him. His bright blue eyes held honesty, and Naruto had never lied to her before; there had to be something she was missing.

"This tea… what does it taste like?"

Naruto moaned as he picked himself off the ground.

"I dunno… just really nasty."

"Couldn't you be more specific? Is it sour or bitter?"

"Bitter."

"What's it smell like?"

"Um….nasty. Like…" Naruto rubbed his chin. "…like an old hot spring!"

_Sulfur… I've got it!_

"Naruto, do you have any idea what you've been drinking?!"

Naruto looked at Sakura as if she'd just asked him what her own name was.

"No."

"It's a muscle memory enhancer!" She exclaimed as she helped him back on to the platform.

"What?"

"Well, if you move in a certain way a lot of times, your muscles get use to moving that way, so you can move without it hurting. It's why your legs hurt if you do a lot of walking without shoes; your muscles aren't use to walking that way."

Naruto nodded as though he understood.

"That 'nasty tea' enhances this so it becomes easier to learn things."

"Then shouldn't he be teaching me how to do things, like the right way to hold a sword and stuff. What if my muscles have been recording the wrong thing?!"

Sakura looked up at the sky as she thought.

"Well… do you want to be a Bushido master, Naruto?"

"Hell no! I'm a ninja!"

"Then why do you need to learn the 'right' way to hold a sword in Bushido? You already know how to use your body in the best possible way as a ninja."

Naruto thought about this for a moment.

"Yeah… I guess so… But hey! Why haven't I heard about this muscle junk before!? It would've been really handy when Iruka-sensei was making us run around the village!"

"Well, it's not that easy to make. I couldn't make it; few people can. It also makes you really, really sick…. I get it! You never get sick because of Kyuubi! And, in reality, there is no substitute for hard work… you said it yourself, there are no shortcuts, right?"

"That's true… But he's still beating me up!"

"I think… he's been doing something equally smart and stupid. By fighting him you're gaining experience in the fastest way possible. It seems like he doesn't want to keep you here any longer than you need to be. However, he overlooked the fact that, when it comes to Bushido, he's stronger than you by a hundred times. At this rate, you'll never defeat him."

Naruto sank to the stone ground and watched a stray leaf skip across the gray surface.

"Then how can I get that necklace back…? I have to get it back. I promised Tsunade-obachan I would take good care of it…" His face drooped and Sakura smacked him on the head.

"Ow!" Naruto looked up to see Sakura grinning.

"Stupid! Don't you have your own skills? Who said you had to defeat him using Bushido?"

"But he's a ninja too. You said it yourself. He's like Jiraiya or Kakashi-sensei's dad. He can probably counter everything I've got… I don't have any talent… like Sasuke…"

"That's not true."

Naruto looked up and saw Sakura walking away from him. She stopped and clasped her hands behind her back.

"Sure, you have the Kage Bunshin and the Rasengan. You may be able to summon Gama Bunta, but those aren't the best things."

She squeezed her neck with her shoulders.

"My favorite thing about Naruto is that… even when things seem hopeless…" She whispered. Suddenly, she wheeled around and struck the thumbs-up, cool-guy pose.

"…That you never give up!!!"

Naruto blinked in astonishment. That pose… She imitated it from his undying promise over a year ago when he swore o bring Sasuke back, at the risk of his own life. He failed once, than twice, but he still managed to reach through the darkness for Sasuke and pull him out, finally bringing him back on the third attempt, nearly dying in the process. Sakura held the gesture in her heart.

She smiled brightly and tilted her head to the side.

"So don't go giving up now, Stupid!!!"

Sakura laughed. Naruto blinked at her, sighed and stood up. She was right; he knew what he had to do. He grinned back at her, brimming with determination.

"Thanks, Sakura-chan."

"That's what friends are for."

-

Ronoa lazily reclined against a rock, a toothpick protruding from his lips, as Naruto stepped onto the landing before his cave.

"So you finally decided to show up…" The old man pulled the pick from his teeth. "Good. I have a whole kettle of tea just waiting for you."

"No. Fuck that."

Ronoa blinked in surprise at the boy's stern tone. Naruto stood before him, glaring, not like the 14 year-old brat he was, but like a man with a sense of purpose and responsibility.

"I'm not here for your tea, your sword, or your stupid Bushido. I'm here for the necklace you stole from me." He reached his arm over his shoulder and drew his katana, pointing it at Ronoa. "This bullshit ends here, old man. I'm going to kick your ass."

Ronoa stood up and brushed himself off. The necklace swung like a pendulum from around his neck.

"Is that so?" He looked Naruto straight in the eye. "Then you'd better make this worth my time."

He threw off his long traveler's cloak, picked up his long, broad katana, and the two bound off into the trees.

They arrived in a large grass-covered clearing. Wind whipped around it like a peanut gallery. Naruto stood at the ready, bent for combat, sword clasped tightly in his hands, twenty yards from Ronoa, who held his sword low at his side. The swift breeze whistled ominously through the buckling trees as the two warriors faced each other in stand-off.

Naruto raised his sword and charged, letting out a battle cry. He plummeted toward Ronoa and struck at his head. The old man lazily held up his sword to block and easily pushed Naruto off him. Naruto stumbled to the ground and struck again. Once more Ronoa put up a perfect defense and casually knocked Naruto aside like a fly. Naruto swung at Ronoa's met and met the other katana hard. He swiped at Ronoa's neck, but the old man easily dodged out of the way. Panting, Naruto shifted his feet on the ground and went for a final full frontal attack. He swiped vertically at Ronoa's gray hair with all his might.

The blade hummed as in became lodged between Ronoa's index and middle fingers. Naruto pulled to get it loose but to no avail.

"What's with all the big talk?" Ronoa leaned in close. "You haven't improved a bit since yesterday."

With his free hand, Ronoa flipped his katana and slammed the hilt hard into Naruto's stomach. Naruto's eyes grew wide as sharp pain ripped through his belly. He let go of his sword, stumbled backward a couple steps and doubled over in pain. He began to cough into the ground.

"I'm surprised." Ronoa responded in a semi-amused fashion. "Most people would have passed out."

He may not have gotten there yet, but it was something Naruto was fighting. His vision blurred in front of him like an unfocused lens.

_No,_ he chanted to himself, _I will not give in!_

Ronoa let Naruto's sword fall to the ground and turned back toward the cave.

"This fight is over." He proclaimed. "If you can still walk, pick up your sword and follow me back." Ronoa began to move away.

Naruto glared up at his back, his whole body shaking from the blow. With a trembling hand, he reached out for his sword and used it to prop himself up. Stumbling slightly, he held the sword in a fighting stance and charged at Ronoa's back. He lifted his sword as he ran and jumped smashing the katana at the old man's head. Ronoa spun, and, in an instant, met Naruto's blow with his blade.

"It's not good swordsmanship to attack someone from behind." He muttered.

"I told you, I'm not a swordsman!" Naruto retaliated. "I'm a ninja!"

He quickly dropped to a crouching position, stuck the sword between his teeth and made several seals.

_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_

Twenty Naruto clones appeared out of thin air, each carrying an identical sword. They charged like a stampede at Ronoa and he swiped his katana through all of them with the precision of a senin. One by one, the doppelgangers fell until there was nothing left including the original. Ronoa tensed as the summer wind blew through the clearing, leaves scattering like a crowd. There was a slight crunch from above. Ronoa looked up to see Naruto bound out of a tree at him.

"I've got you now, old man!"

"But you're forgetting one thing." Ronoa smiled.

"?"

"I'm a ninja too."

Naruto's blade sliced through an explosion of vapor. He landed solidly on the ground and looked around frantically. He felt a slight tug on the back of his shirt as Ronoa hooked it on to the tip of his sword. With all his might, Ronoa flung Naruto at the tree jumped out of. A sickening crack emerged as Naruto collided with the trunk.

"Give it up." Ronoa smirked as Naruto fell back to the ground. "You shouldn't even be able to get up after-" But he swallowed his words. Naruto inched his way up to standing, using his sword as a walking stick.

"I know a girl who hits a lot harder than you." He coughed and spat something red out of the corner of his mouth. Naruto regained his balance and held his sword steady for a third time. "Let's finish this."

Ronoa smiled and, for the first time, stood in a full battle stance. The two glared at each other.

They both charged, katana blazing behind them, wind tearing at them like a jet stream. Fifteen feet… twelve feet… ten feet… 9…8… 7… 6… Naruto began to raise his sword, but Ronoa was faster. The flat side of the thick katana collided with Naruto's cheek like a baseball bat. Ronoa's strength was ready to send him flying again, but Naruto pushed back.

_No, I won't lose!_

Naruto shoved rudely against the might of the katana, and moved forward along it, the blade's cutting into the side of his face. Blood ran freely down his chin, but he could see it, his target.

It took Ronoa a minute to figure out what Naruto was doing. One moment, he was going to send the little brat soaring like a home run, the next, the Kyuubi katana came rising at him like the tongue of a frog. Naruto stabbed at Ronoa's collar bone, at the fragile string that lay draped over it. The old man barely had time to dodge as the blade swiped at his neck, a small red line spewing blood left in its wake. Ronoa dodged backward, put all his energy into his own sword and hit Naruto out of the park. The blonde-haired boy went skidding over the grass like a smooth, round stone on water. He finally came to rest as his head struck a tree.

"Ow!!!" Naruto clutched his head then stood up and stomped on the ground.

"Goddam it!!" He missed, how could he miss!? He was so close to swiping that necklace from Ronoa's neck!

Something small ricocheted off Naruto's head.

"Ow!"

He glared down at the mischievous prick, and dived down to scoop it up off the ground where it had fallen. Naruto stared in awe. In his hand lay his prize, Shodaime's pendant.

"But… why?!" He looked over at Ronoa. A small stream of blood ran down his chest.

"Oh please," Ronoa scoffed, "You were never going to beat me. You got damn close though." Suddenly, he smiled. "Good work."

Naruto blinked.

"You mean it's over?"

"Yeah, you can have it back."

Naruto stared stupidly at him for a moment, and then a huge smile erupted over his face.

"YEAAAAAH!!!!" He cheered and toppled over in a fit of laughter.

Ronoa watched Naruto wriggle around in the grass and put a hand on the cut on his neck. He stared at the red ooze on his palm in a combination of self-satisfaction and awe. Something poked him and Ronoa turned around to acknowledge his addressee.

"Here," Naruto held up the sword, in its sheath, to him.

"What?"

"A trade. You said I was keeping this as a trade until I got my necklace back. You came take it back now."

Ronoa smiled and chuckled.

"You retard. It's not mine."

"What?!"

"It's yours."

"Huh?"

"Besides I don't need more swords. Keep it."

Naruto blinked down at the blade.

"Are you serious?!"

"Does it look like I'm kidding?"

"Um… thanks…"

Ronoa sighed.

"I will say this though. I take it back about you being like _that man_; you're more like an apprentice he used to have."

Naruto blinked in confusion, but didn't ask. Ronoa laughed and held out his hand. Naruto reached out and shook it. In an instant, Ronoa anchored him over his shoulder and pile-drived Naruto into the ground.

"Ack!" Naruto crashed into a heap. Ronoa stood over him laughing.

"Nevermind. You're exactly like _that man_!"

"B-bastard…"

-

Sakura stepped out of Sorano Fuuka the next day and stared up at the beautiful building for the last time. She hadn't been around it long, yet she felt like it had given her so much that she owed it something, like a fruit basket.

"Oi!! Sakura-chan! Have you returned the scroll yet?" Naruto hollered at her. He and Sasuke stood a little ways down the concrete path, packs in hand, ready to leave. Sasuke had returned his hair to its original fullness and Naruto itched irritably at the square bandage plastered to the side of his face.

"Hai!" Sakura called as she dashed over to them.

"What took so long?" Sasuke muttered as he handed over her red backpack. Sakura stuck her arms through the straps.

"Well, she gave me this thing…" Sakura held up an old, crusty-looking scroll about an inch thick. It looked different from most scrolls they'd ever seen before. It was made of black velvet and decorated with silver writing, "Archive No. 026."

"It's the Unseal to a vault in the Ninjutsu Archive on Zosho. She said I should take whatever is in it…"

"Don't you also need a key?" Sasuke wondered.

"She said we already have it."

"Whatever, we'll have to do that later. Zosho is really out of our way and we need to find Kouji." A cold wind rushed Sasuke's back and he shivered slightly, quickly shaking off the feeling.

"Ahhh, that crazy woman…" Sakura complained as they began down the endless stream of stairs. "She's probably just toying with me. It's all her fault that I used four pints of blood of an extra set of seals I didn't even use."

"Who knows," Naruto exclaimed jovially, "maybe they'll come in handy!" He shot Sasuke an evil smirk.

"Don't make me hurt you." The black-haired boy hissed as he flushed.

"Oh come on! You're just jealous because I got this super cool sword and mad Bushido skills while all you did was work at a bar!"

A vein pulsated irritably in Sasuke's forehead. Naruto laughed maniacally.

"Oh, Naruto." Sakura started. "That reminds me. Now that you've got your necklace back… well, what did you lose?"

"Huh?" Naruto looked up at her blankly.

"You know, what Sa-… that fortune teller said. Sasuke and I were supposed to find something and you were supposed to lose something forever. I found out about your seal, but what did you lose?"

"I lost my lunch!"

It was Sakura's turn to stare blankly.

"Huh?"

"Remember when we came here and I puked? I lost my lunch!"

"Naruto, I don't think that's it…"

"Then what else could it be? Nothing else is missing."

"Except your dignity, maybe…" Sakura muttered playfully.

"Hey Sakura-chan! That's mean!" Naruto glared at her.

She raised her hands in defense.

"I'm kidding. Kidding!"

"A secret." Sasuke's voice cut through their circus of conversation.

"Huh?" Both of them looked at him in question.

"You lost a secret, right? Sakura found out about the seal. Wasn't that important to you?"

Naruto rubbed his chin.

"Hey, yeah… I guess you're right!"

"But then," Sakura piped up. "I wonder what Sasuke found!"

"I don't give a damn." Sasuke scoffed. "Fortunes are for shit."

"Awwww…" Naruto pouted.

"Sasuke you're such a crab!" Sakura squealed.

-

From the roof of Sorano Fuuka's main building, two figures watched the trio leave.

"Are you sure it was okay to give her that Unseal, Kiki-chama? You were its keeper after all."

Satori Kikyou grinned.

"Of course, Tsunade has no right to yell at me; she did it too. I'm a little surprised that you gave him that sword, Ro-kun; you love that sword."

"Yeah, but it was getting restless. I can't leave this area, and that sword is drawn to the other… It was a good decision."

"If that sword leads him to its other, he's going to be in a mountain of trouble, you realize that."

"So, didn't you say you had a dream about them getting into trouble, Kiki-chama?"

"That was different, though… Those kids, they have a long journey ahead of them… It will only get harder from here…"

Ronoa smiled into the blue summer sky.

"Don't worry, I'm sure they'll be just fine."

* * *

Author's End-of-Arc Notes: At last!!! The Sorano Fuuka section is over! We can move on! thisis by far the longest chapter in the entire story! I would like to thank all the readers for reading through this entire thing. I know it was suspenceful and erking at times, but it seemed to come out all right in the end ne? :) 

About the Arc: There's not much to say about it. Everyone knows that the main thing about it was the Naruto's seal thing. About Sasuke's finding, well, he did find something that will relate to much, much later in the story, and it's not really rocket science to figure out. So if you know what it is, good job! If you didn't don't worry! More things like it will come, including the event that it's connected to. ( cackles maniacly And you all thought it was love! :P ). As is obvious, Satori Kikyou and Ronoa were named after characters from other series, however, I can't stress it enough that they are not those actual characters. I only named them after them; this isn't a crossover in anyway, shape or form.... that would be lame for this fic... Naming a character like that has nothing to do with how they look, more to do with their personality and their role in the story. And if you're confused about this Zosho thing, don't worry. I'll get into that later.

About Ro-kun and Kiki-chama: :3 There's actually a love story going on here, but the chapter got so long I didn't want to waste space elaborating on it... so I'll breifly explain it here for all those who care. Both Ronoa and Kikyou are originally leaf nin, Kikyou moved up when she was 15as part of a peace treaty, Ronoa moved in to spy about ten years later. They were on the same team growing up, and their team was rivaled with the Sanin's. Their third member died in the ninja wars. Ronoa and Kikyou are "engaged". They promised each other that, when the tensions between Fire Country and Lightning Country fall, they will both move back to Fire Country and get married, but no such occasion has ever arisen, and both think it's a failed hope. But as Kikyou says "I don't mind stay here with you, like this, forever." (squeeeeeeee) I brought them in originally, because I wanted to parallel them to ShikaIno, a pairing that I love beyond belief and that was hinted upon during the Pageant. However do not dispair, ShikaTema fans, I have tricks for you too. ;) I believe I've mentioned before how unspecified the pairings are in this story. (I think there's onlyone that I'm for 100 using Kishimoto's characters, but you won't hear about that for a while.)

Next Chapter: The treck to the Hidden Cloud Village begins!


	25. Cultivation

**Chapter 25: Cultivation**

"Are we there yet?" Naruto whined as he nearly tripped over another tree root.

"Will you stop asking that?!" Sakura snapped. "You have eyes; does it look like we're there?"

Naruto stuck his nose into the breeze and grumbled as he took her advice. Everywhere, to the left, to the right, straight ahead and behind, the terrain flourished with trees, and not the trees he was used to. Unlike the gnarled, gangly trees that inhabited Konoha, these trees shot straight out of the earth like geysers. The branches lowest to the ground were still six or seven feet above Naruto's head. He didn't like them; their leaves were like pins and stabbed his rear every time he sat down, and after two nights in the woods, he didn't know if he would ever sit properly again. At least, they smelled nice and that seemed to make Sakura happy. She carried a bucket of smiles around with her that made Naruto forget about his butt pain. Even when she yelled at him it was more a gentle scolding than her usual tyrannical wailing.

The road to the Hidden Cloud switched between dirt and stone and was well traveled. The tree of them rarely went two seconds with out someone coming down the opposite way.

Naruto grumbled and glared as they passed another guy who stole a look at Sakura.

"How much longer do you think we have?" He asked.

"Maybe a day or so." Sakura put a finger over her lips as she thought.

Sasuke took a turn glaring down the next perv who walked by.

"Sasuke."

He jumped, startled.

"Huh? What?" He grumbled, regaining his composure. He looked to the side to see Sakura eying him suspiciously.

"Are you okay, Sasuke?" Sakura asked her voice full of concern. "You've been awfully antsy…"

"Maybe he's just got a bunch of pine needles down his pants." Naruto smirked.

Sasuke repressed the urge to pummel his friend. In truth, he had been feeling a little jumpy, like there was something he had to do, but couldn't remember what. He rubbed the back of his neck to calm the hairs standing on end.

"I'm fine." He lied. Telling them wouldn't make the feeling go away. Naruto bought the lie, Sakura didn't; Sasuke could see it in her glowering eyes, but she didn't pry.

"Anyway," She began again, "I was wondering how much money we have. I know your job didn't pay very well, but it covered the apartment with some left over, right?"

Sasuke thought for a moment.

"We have some cash, but not enough to get an apartment."

"Awww…." Naruto pouted. "No ramen then…"

"Don't you ever think about anything else?" Sasuke moaned.

"Of course, I do." Naruto retorted. "What the hell is that suppose to mean?!"

"I wasn't implying anything." Sasuke mumbled nonchalantly.

"Why you…!" Naruto shook his fist at his friend.

"Can't you two stop bickering for five minutes?" Sakura sighed. "You're disturbing the trees."

Sasuke and Naruto gave her blank stares.

"Wha…?"

"The trees here are very happy, but your arguing upsets them."

Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other.

"I think she's gone mental." Naruto whispered and Sasuke nodded.

"I heard that!"

They continued down the road as it became steeper and, to Sakura's dismay, the trees began to thin out.

"I'm tired…" Naruto groaned as he stared up into the bright sky. "It feels like we've been walking all day…"

"We have." Sakura informed him as she jumped over a stray rock. "I'd say it's about 7 o'clock right now. But it's hard to tell with it so bright out; we'll have to buy a watch or something in the next town."

"That, and some longer shorts for you." Sasuke muttered as he glared down another passing perv.

The sun had begun to set by the time they reached the next village. The small windows of log cabins lit up as the sun spread a rainbow over the sky like butter. Even at a distance, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura could hear people singing loudly and the clink of glasses toasting each other. The noise of the town only grew louder as they approached it and when they finally hopped off the dirt and onto the paved road, the din was almost unbearable. Everyone laughed and sang as if they had no care in the world.

"Where the hell is this?" Naruto grumbled. His legs hurt from walking and he wanted to sleep.

Sakura dodged a drunken man who stumbled out of a bar on their left and opened up the map.

"Suiyo-Kame." She replied. "It's the last town before the Hidden Cloud Village. We're only about three or four miles from it."

"This is a traveler's town." Sasuke muttered. "Shipments from the ports at Sorano are delivered here, where they bought for the citizens of the Hidden Cloud. All the transactions take place in this village."

His two comrades shot questionable looks at him.

"How can you tell?" Sakura asked.

"The bar I worked in was a hangout for deliverymen. A lot of them travel this route for a living, hauling things back and forth."

"That's interesting." Sakura exclaimed.

"Not really. It's just useless information."

"Maybe this is what you were 'supposed to find.'" Naruto chuckled. Sasuke gave him an impatient glare.

"What else did you find out about these trade routes?" Sakura asked.

"Well, there are two main trade channels; the one and one that goes to the west. The west path, it's called the Ousen Ribbon, which leaves the Hidden Cloud's westernmost side and runs across Sound Territory and Waterfall Territory, all the way to the Hidden Rock Village. Why do you want to know so badly?"

"I dunno. It may come in handy…" Sakura smiled. "Do you know of a good route to Zosho?"

"I only learned about trade patterns." Sasuke shrugged. "And Zosho doesn't fall under a direct trade route that I know of."

Sakura nodded in acknowledgement. Naruto's stomach grumbled loud enough for them to hear it over the racket of the town. He groaned and hunched over his hollow stomach.

"Sorry, Naruto." Sakura grinned spitefully as they passed a lively Karaoke bar. "We need to save our cash to get a place to stay."

"But I'm too tired to hunt for something…"

"I'm sorry," She patted his head, "but there's nothing we can do."

Sasuke took a quick glance behind them and smirked.

"Maybe not."

-

The Karaoke bar shook as the contestants for the Daily Sing-A-Thon wailed, brutally butchering lyrics to cheesy love ballads. From a small table in the back of the room, Naruto cringed.

"I hate you." Sakura hissed as she pinned a #12 button to her halter top. "I hate both of you."

"You should consider yourself lucky." Sasuke muttered. "They only accept twelve entries per contest. We got here just in time."

"Yata!" Naruto cheered. "We get to eat out!"

Sakura sulked.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan!" Naruto grinned. "You'll win this thing easy!"

Sakura just glared at him.

"I think I'd rather starve."

"Next up, Number 10! Azutarou!"

The place roared with laughter as a large, burly man covered in tattoos stepped onto the stage and began to screech like a dying animal.

"It's really not going to be hard for you to beat these people, Sakura." Sasuke reassured her. "Unless the point is to get the lowest score possible."

The score rang up for contestant ten: 39. The rowdy crowd cheered for him as he drunkenly stumbled off the stage.

"Wow, that's really high for someone who sucks so much." Naruto dug into his ear with his pinky. "This is going to be a clean sweep. Ramen-sama, here we come!"

"Next is, Number 11! The reigning champion of this competition! Madoka-chan!"

The bar went wild with hoots and cheers as a girl not much older than themselves walked confidently up to the microphone. Her light blonde hair cascaded like the sea over thin shoulders. Her build was strong and the white, thigh-length white dress accented her curves perfectly. Sakura's intimidation turned to jealousy as she watched Naruto and Sasuke gawk at Madoka. She pouted and glared at the newcomer, who opened sparkling, pale blue eyes and began to sing.

Within seconds, Sakura's jealousy evaporated and replaced by a great sadness. Madoka's song spoke of unrequited love and betrayal; her voice floated in the air so smoothly, it took her to another place altogether. Sakura's heart bled for this person she didn't know as if they had been friends since birth and was reminded of her own unrequited love not so long ago. Sakura turned to look at Sasuke, who also seemed mesmerized by the singer, and sighed wistfully. She'd almost forgotten the feeling of loving someone who could care less. The song ended like a whisper and was greeted by the yelling and screaming of her adoring fans.

"Uwaaaah!" Naruto laid his chin on the table as the score board lit up: 90. "Sakura-chan, how can you beat that? It was incredible!"

Sakura slapped him on the head.

"Ow!"

"I have to win, right? Don't you want to eat?" Without waiting for an answer Sakura skipped off to the stage.

She passed Madoka on her way up. A tense moment floated between them, and then the two went on their way.

"And last, but defiantly not least, Number 12! Akane!"

Sakura jumped up tree stairs and took the microphone. She gritted her teeth against the memory of Madoka's song. Screw unrequited love. She'd conquered it once; she didn't need some blonde-haired retard bringing all that pain back inside her. She had people to love now, who loved her back. Her past didn't matter anymore, but for a good laugh with those she cared about.

"Go Sakura-chan!" Naruto cheered from the back.

"Dumbass." Sasuke muttered. "She's going by 'Akane.'"

"Erk." Naruto looked up at the stage.

A dull murmur rippled through the crowd as Sakura stood on the stage. Naruto didn't care if what they said was positive or negative; he thought Sakura looked radiant. Her hair was mussed and she was covered in dirt; a scab in comparison to the clean-cut Madoka. Her shorts had patches of mud and blood, her white mesh top was no longer white, but Sakura still shone like a star. Her face was prettier than Madoka's, her skin more radiant, her smile more pure, and underneath this all, Naruto saw the person who woke up next to him everyday, who lovingly slapped a bandage over his wounds and who made him breakfast that very morning. Naruto blushed and became entranced even before she began to sing.

Sakura took a deep breath and let all her feelings out. Her guilty joy that, while her parents were dead and her friends at home were crying over her, she was having the time of her life. Loneliness had become thing of the past. The empty, gaping chasm left by the death of her parents evaporated when she was around her best friends; they were her family now. She took all of these emotions and pressed them into lyrics.

She opened her eyes as the song finished. A shocked silence fell over the establishment, then, starting with Naruto in the back, a deafening cheer washed over the crowd like a wave. Sakura winced at the sound, not sure whether to be happy at her success or sad at her cracking ear drums. The score machine behind her beeped three times as it calibrated.

Beep

Beep

Beep

…

92.

-

Naruto cheered as they left the bar, his adrenaline pumping, a bucket of cash nesting in Sakura's arms.

"That was so cool, Sakura-chan!"

Sakura laughed in embarrassment.

"Do that everyday and we'll never go hungry again!"

"Stupid. Sasuke sneered. "We're not staying here. Tomorrow, we're heading over to the Hidden Cloud Village, finding Kouji, and then we're headed south to Zosho."

Naruto grumbled and sulked.

They picked up dango from a street vendor and found a youth hostile to stay at. Sasuke and Naruto split off from Sakura as they headed toward the boy's dorm. They chose a bunk among the already sleeping customers and Sasuke's neck prickled again. He had the lurking feeling like something was squeezing around his neck.

_Maybe a bath will help…_ He thought.

"C'mon Naruto." He dragged his friend away from his bed.

"Why…?" Naruto groaned.

"Because you reek."

Naruto sighed and followed him out. The bath was relatively empty, only three other people managed to come out this time of night.

"Ahhh…" Naruto sighed as he sank into the hot water. "This is nice."

Sasuke waited through the pool, his muscles flexed uneasily. He was ready, but for what he didn't know.

Even as they got out and went to retrieve their clothes from the community wash-dryer, Sasuke's nerves still hadn't calmed down. He put a hand to his forehead and sighed.

_Maybe I should ask Sakura about this…_

Just then he heard the door to the laundry room open and feet shuffled across the tile. Sasuke passively looked up to see a young boy, between the ages of 12 and 13 staring back at him. Their eyes met. The boy's grew wide with fear. He stumbled backward through the door, and his footsteps echoed through the hall as he fled. Sasuke stared blankly at the door, swinging freely back and forth.

"What the hell was that about?" Naruto wondered. He checked behind them to make sure the kid wasn't shock by something there.

Sasuke turned to Naruto.

"My Sharingan's aren't on by mistake, are they?"

Naruto shook his head.

"Maybe you're just that ugly."

Sasuke ignored the opportunity to hit Naruto. They retrieved their clothes, redressed and walked back to their bunk.

-

The young boy stumbled across the barren, dark streets of the Hidden Cloud Village, sweat beading down his face. He dashed by stores and shops, turning into an alley where he dodged a dumpster and was rudely yanked out of his pace by a hand grabbing his collar. The attacker slammed him against a wooden wall and held a long kunai sharply to his neck.

"What's a little shit like you doing here this time of night?" A growling voice echoed from the darkness.

"Stop it, Mitsurugi-taichou! It's me!"

"Eh? Oi, Tsubara! Hold up that lamp for me!"

The boy squinted as a blinding light speared through the darkness.

"Holy crap!"

The boy felt himself being tossed to the ground. A burly teenager glared down at him, the shiny forehead protector gleaming off his forehead.

"Runt! What the hell are you doing here!? You're suppose to-"

"I have to see Kouji-sama!" The boy coughed as he picked himself off the ground.

"Eh? Wha-?"

"It's urgent!"

The teenager scooped the boy up in one arm.

"Fine! But he's going to have my head for this!" and dashed off.

"C'mon, Tsubara!"

They reached a pothole, guarded by two more teenagers, who both saluted the larger one. They jumped down into the sewer and moved silently through the vast tunnels until they came to a small, clean cavern. Twenty or so others, all between the ages of 10 and 17, dashed around the small, dark cave, going in and out via the connecting tunnels. The cavern ended at a desk and a tall chair, guarded by two more soldiers. Mitsurugi brought the boy up to the table and saluted the back of the chair.

"At ease." A voice echoed from the chair. Misturugi did as he was told. "What business?"

"It's Tarou. He says he has important news for you."

"Well, Tarou?" The voice responded.

"Kouji-sama," the boy panted. "that guy, that guy Ku-san was talking about, he's here!"

"… Go on."

"He's staying at the youth hostile in Suiyo-Kame!"

"…" The seated individual seemed to be thinking.

"Misturugi." He said suddenly. The large boy jumped.

"I want you to follow up on this, send Tsubara or Mihara. If he truly is that guy, do not engage; report back to me immediately."

"Yes, Kouji-sama." Mitsurugi saluted again and began to bark orders at various individuals.

"As for you, Tarou," the seated speaker said, "What about your mission?"

"I… I.." the boy stuttered. He looked away and blushed. "I haven't found anything yet."

"Very well, resume your mission. Don't worry about this intruder, I'll deal with him."

* * *

Author's Note: Oooo... suspenceful! Can you handle it!? Oh, btw dango are japanese sweets; they're quite good. :) As always, I'd like to thank the readers! I love you guys! and I apologize for all the typos! If I had the time, I'd get a beta reader, but I don't. >. .

Where is Kakashi!?: I've been getting this question a lot, and well, if I told you, that wouldn't be very much fun, now would it? ;) I can assure you that he isn't doing nothing that's for sure!

Last Chapter's Battle: Yes! I know it was lame! but there's not much else it could be at this point: Naruto just doesn't knowhow to use a swordwell enough to make the fight cool yet! Learning is a process and I can tell you, he won't stay lame forever... but that's all I'm going to tell you! It wuld be really lame if I made him insantly genius, which rarely ever happens.

Next Chapter:Sasuke's conflict!Just who the hell is this Kouji guy!?


	26. Assertion

**Chapter 26: : Assertion**

Sasuke blinked at the rickety boards above him. The pale light of dawn crept into the creaky room through large, glass windows near his head. The night hadn't treated him well. Every couple hours, Sasuke would jerk awake, a sickly, prickle teasing his neck and the nerves in his arms. He switched between the dream world and the real world like a light bulb, on and off. Sasuke sighed, placing the back of his palm over his eyes.

The dark planks of wood squeaked as Naruto rolled over in the bunk above him, and the man below Sasuke began to snore. Sasuke looked to the side blankly and wearily noted the seven rows of bed stacks on his left, each with their own sleeping citizens.

Sasuke lurched forward to sit and whacked his head against Naruto bunk. Rubbing the pain away with his right palm and pushing the plush, blue sleeping bag off himself, he looked around at the other residents. Some grunted and rolled over, but none awoke.

He carefully swung himself onto the creaky, vertical ladder and peered up at at the bunk Naruto slept in.

"Oi, Naruto." He whispered harshly.

The boy smacked his lips together and rolled over in his sleep. Sasuke smacked his head, hard. The blonde jerked awake aburptly and Sasuke clamped his hand firmly over his mouth to smother the inevitable yelling. Naruto flailed widly, like a fish out of water, muffled curses whispering up from under the hand.

"Shhh!" Sasuke put a finger to his lips and scowled at his catch.

"Get up," he hissed, "and keep it down." He slowly removed his hand from Naruto's face and wiped it on his boxers. He carefully hopped to the cold wooden floor and began to rummage around his bunk for his pants.

Naruto pulled himself up, squinted into the unwelcome light and scratched his stomach. By the time, he had finished pulling on his shirt, Sasuke already stood in the doorway, his sleeping bag rolled up and tucked under his arm.

"Hurry up." The dark-haired boy mouthed.

Naruto grumbled silently and preceded to roll up his own sleeping bag. After struggling with the draw-string for a couple minutes, Naruto jumped down from the bunk.

"Why are we leaving so early?" He whispered hashly at Sasuke.

"I want to get the Kouji thing over with as soon as possible." He muttered as they walked out of the dorm and down the hall. "We can keep our stuff in our lockers here for the day, until we find Kouji; then pick it up when we come back this way, and get out of this aera quickly." In truth, Sasuke just wanted to leave. He felt uneasy, like behind every pebble was someone shadowing him.

Naruot yawned widely.

"Do you even think this Kouji guy will be up this early?"

"No, but we can question the townspeople, find out everything we need to know and get this businedd over with."

They turnned down another hall and to the right, into the locker room.Hundreds of spacious, gray metal rectangles lined the walls like trees in a forest.

"What if Sakura-chan isn't awake?"

"Then we'll sneak into her dorm and wake her." Sasuke replied casually as he openned his locker and pulled out his backpack.

Naruto blushed brightly.

"Are you sure that's even allowed?!" He fumbled clumbsily with his lock.

"Since when do you care?"

"It just seems… wrong." Naruto heaved his backpack out of the small cubby, onto the thin wooden bench and began to shove his sleeping roll inside.

"Well, it's not like we have a choice." Sasuke dug into a side pocket and pulled out his shuriken holster and his kunai satchel.

"What are you doing?" Naruto glared quizzically at his friend as Sasuke strapped the kunai pack around his waist, just below the stainless steel knife, the only weapon he carried everywhere.

"Just being careful." Sasuke replied as he adjusted the shuriken holster around his right thigh.

"Are you okay?" Naruto muttered. He looked at Sasuke as though concerned for his sanity.

"Of course I am."

Still unsure, Narutodug into his own backpack for his weapons. As much as he hated to admit it, Sasuke had a knack for these things. Naruto wasn't about to lose or be caught off guard and unprepared, and the six-inch dagger strapped to his hip wouldn't do much if they ever got attacked. He grabbed his own shuriken holster and kunai satchel and hastely buckled them on. Sasuke shoved his backpack into his locker, spun the combinationand turnned to leave the room.

"Wait up, you bastard!" Naruto yelped as he pulled his pack into the locker again and dashed after Sasuke.

The common room bustled with busy people; the chairs and sofas scattered around the place held happy customers all yammering about this or that. Sakura didn't happen to be any of them.

"Nope. I didn't think she'd be up this early." Sasuke muttered. "Go get her."

"What!?" Naruto yapped. "Why me?"

"It'll take less time if only one of us goes, and you're better at Henge no Jutsu than me." Sasuke grumbled matter-of-factly.

Naruto cursed his friend as he meandered to a desolute corner.

"Henge!" He whispered, transforming himself into the chipper, pigtailed girl. He looked catiously around to see if anyone noticed. All the other guest were too busy giggling about their own lives to pay attention. Sasuke leaned against the wall and tapped his foot impatiently, and Naruto slipped secretively into the girl's dorm.

He tiptoed down a bright hall, past the girl's bath and bathroom and shimied up to the door where the hall ended. Slowly, Naruto peered into the sleeping quarters. Smaller than the boys dorm, this room carriedonly three or four rows of bunks. Not many women were there, only a twenty-something lady asleep in the second bunk of row two, a portly one on the bottom bunk of row four and a familiar red mass on the top of bunk three.

Naruto grinned brightly and dashed over to the third row.

"Oi! Sakura-chan!" He whispered frantic and cheerful as he clambered up the wooden bunk and peered at her like an exotic animal in the zoo. The back of her head flowed in locks of pink over her pillow and her red sleeping bag had been pulled up all the way to her neck. She groaned slightly.

"Eh?" She muttered mundanely.

"Sasuke wants us to get this mission over with."

Sakura rolled over and found herself staring into Naruto's sunshiney girl face. She pulled herself up, sleeping bag and all and blinked at her chipper friend.

"He's crazy." She muttered, wriggling for warmth. She sighed, squeezed her arm out of the sleeping bag and reached for her clothes. As she pulled her red tank top from the small pile at the foot of her bed, she looked to the side to see Naruto still gawking at her.

"Do you mind!" She snapped and twacked him on the head.

Naruto waited outside with Sasuke until Sakura emerged, still pulling on her left shoe. She looked at them both, at the kunai backs and the shuriken holsters, and cocked a quizzical eyebrow.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it." Sasuke muttered as he ehaded for the door through the common room.

Sakura looked to Naruto, who just shrugged. Together the three began their treck to the Hidden Cloud Village. The path there was easy, paved with stones, and user-friendly. Many people, especially those with carriages of goods dashed up and down the road.

The street climbed up through tree covered hills, until it came to the base of a sierra, at the point wghere two particularly large mountains met, the path slid between them like a river. For two miles, the road curved around the large rocks and, finally, openned up at the foot of a valley.

"Oh wow!!" Sakura exclaimed.

Embedded withing the mountainside, in the sprawling valley, lay the Village Hidden in the Clouds. The white rock path they had been walking turned into a white rock bridge over a clear bottom river and webbed out to become the streets of the town. The buildings looked like little pagodas or shrines, with wooden beams and red tile roofs, and layers themselves up the rocky face, ending in a large temple-shaped building with the symbol "Lightning" upon it. This Raikage's domain sat directly under the chins of five enormous faces, carved into the mountains side, all watching over their precious little country. Amoung the houses and the white path, curved the shallow river that ran through the city and around it, apssing under them as Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura walked over the bridge and into this impressive landscape.

"Don't forget, you guys." Sakura hissed under her breath. "Absolutly no definable skills! If they find out we're from Konoha, they'll keep us as hostages to use against Tsunade."

"That doesn't sound so bad." Naruto muttered as the continued into the town.

"Really? You want to end up like Ibiki-san?" Sakura snapped.

Naruto grimaced at the mere memory of the specialty jounin's burns and deformations.

"Like I said, " Sakura continued, "Nothing! No Rasengan…" She glared at Naruto. "… and no Sharingan." She glared at Sasuke. Sasuke stuck his hands in his pockets and, disgruntled, looked up at the bright sky. She wasn't helping his pemontions any.

As they walked down a main street, shops had just begun to open. Signs flipped from "closed" to "open" and old frail hands placed oranges onto their wooden shelves. Some man on a ladder was stringing paper lamps across the road.

Naruto and Sakura "ooohed" and "aaahed" at the picturesque scenery, but Sasuke couldn't enjoy it if he wanted to. The bizarre feeling creeping along his spine had shot up like a geyser. Every stray leaf made him twitch and he constantly checked over his shoulder.

"C'mon, you two." He grumbled. "Let's go look for Kouji."

"Awwww! No way!" Naruto whimpered, "We just got here!"

"And how many times are we going to get a chance like this?" Sakura cried. "C'mon Sasuke. Let's just look around for a little bit and then we'll begin our search."

Sasuke rubbed the back of his neck irritably, and, before he could retaliate, Naruto and Sakura had skipped off to go see the sights.

"Neh? Sakura-chan, where do you want to go first?" Naruto sang as they skidded to a hlt in front of a tourist guide map.

"I want to go to the park." She hummed as she traced a trail on the map with her finger.

"The park!?" Naruto made a disgusted face. "That's boring! I wanna get ramen!"

"Stupid!" Sakura twacked him on the head. Naruto yelped and covered his swollen temple. "Parks aren't boring!"

Sasuke walked up behind them, defeatedly.

"Sasuke!" Sakura wheeled on him. "Naruto wants to get ramen, but I wanna go to the park!"

Sasuke looked down at the pair of eager faces staring up at him, like a pair of five year-olds.

"Well, it's early." He decided, rubbing his neck again. "I don't think a ramen place will be open."

"Yeah!" Sakura threw up her arms in celebration. Naruto sulked and pouted.

"The park it is!" She exclaimed. "C'mon you guys!"

"Fine! But after this we're getting ramen!" Naruto dashed after her as the two galloped off like children in an amusement park, Sasuke trudging along behind like an annoyed parent.

To Naruto, this park was like any park. It had all the same trees, all the same grass with a river running through it and the same old white rock paths. But it seemed to make Sakura come alive. Her face glowed as she skipped along the path, the green leaves cascading down around them, soft sheets of light draping down in ever changing patterns through the long branches.

Like Sorano, this park was covered in cherry trees. With spring over and out of the way, they weren't in bloom, but their seeds lay about everywhere on the bright path. Every now and then, Sakura would bend to pick one up.

"What the hell are you doing that for?" Naruto grumbled. His stomach whined from their lack of breakfast and the soft waft of something savory drifted in the air.

"For fun," She responded gleefully as she stuck three more into her pocket, "they may have some medicinal value I don't yet know of. I collected some from Sorano too."

"Doctors are crazy people." Naruto muttered as he rubbed his stomach. Behind them, Sasuke agreed in silence. "Are you done yet? I'm starved."

"Yeah, yeah. Stop complaining." She stretched and turnned around. "Let's go get ramen then."

"Yeah!" Naruto cheered and began to dash back.

"And he says I'm crazy," Sakura muttered. Silently, Sasuke agreed to this too. "C'mon," Sakura prompted to the silent statue-like Sasuke, "we don't want to lose him." And they dashed after the crazy maniac.

Naruto slowed as he reached the middle another white stone bridge. Disgruntled, he wheeled around at his two friends chugging slowly behind him.

"Hurry up." He grumbled as they caught up with him. Sakura put a hand on the railing.

"Are you sure you know where your going?" She wheezed. The altitude still hadn't settled in her and her breath drew raggedly for a moment.

"Of course, I do!" He cried, brightly and turned to leave. Her took two steps and stopped short, frozen a still frame photo.

"Naruto?" Sakura looked curiously at him.

Then Sasuke felt it; a huge concious pressure fell upon his shoulders. Suddenly the premonition he'd had was no longer a premontion; it was pure textbook fact. Someone was watching them, with beady eyes full of an intent to kill.

Naruto instictively put his hand into the kunai pack and latched onto one of the daggers. Sasuke wheeled around and together the two stepped backward, sandwiching Sakura protectively.

"Eh?" Sakura wondered as she looked back and forth between them. "What's going on?"

"You feel it to, don't you?" Sasuke whispered to Naruto as he put a hand on into his shuriken holster.

"Yeah." Naruto tightened his grip around a kunai.

Sakura blinked in bewilderment, but said nothing.

"We know you're out there!" Sasuke called. "Show yourself!"

A brisk breeze blew through the park. Several swift dark object leapt out of trees, out from under the bridge, and out of bushes, and swirled around them, uncircling the three. Within a millisecond, they were completely surrounded. Sasuke glared around at their attackers. None seemed older than seventeen and the youngest had be eleven. They all wore black, in various chapes and forms, with two common traits. One was an emblem that looked like a rose and the other was the official hitai-ate of The Hidden Cloud. All the attackers bore arms; kunais, shuriken, katana for a few, but none attacked.

Sasuke looked around at them, waiting for a reason to move. At a count of fifteen, beating them all would be unrealistic without their signature techniques.

"You're quite good."

Sasuke's head snapped in front of him. Naruto and Sakura turnned to look as well. An armored, brown boot landed with a thud on the stone walkway as the speaker stepped out of the shadow of the trees. The trees uncovered a boy, not much older than themselves and just as tall as Sasuke, dressed in mesh covered in loose brown clothing. His spikey brown hair had been pulled back to a tuft of ponytail and the base of his neck, his bright amber eyes held authority. Sakura took one look at him and couldn't help blushing. She quickly looked away.

_He's the bad guy, remember?_ She squinted, but couldn't help looking at him again.

He walked like a general amoungst his troops and the ring of ninja around him seemed to treat him as such, because all eyes were on him as though waiting for his command. Unlike his minions, he had no rose badge and no hitai-ate.

Naruto turned around and focused on this aparent leader. Sasuke's muscles tensed as he realized that this mysterious boy was glaring at him and only him.

"Who are you?" Sasuke hissed, the bones in his hand teitching with anticipation. "and what do you want from us?"

"Huh.." The boy scoffed. "I suppose it's customary to give one's own name first." He smirked. "My name is Kouji."

Naruto yelped. Sasuke blinked widely. Sakura finally understand what the girls in Sorano Fuuka were squealing about. Before they had time to respond, Kouji was speaking again.

"… but you don't need to tell me who you are…"

_Whew,_ Naruto sighed, _Akari must've told him about us…_

"…You're the bastard who beat up my subordinates in Sorano."

Naruto did a double-take.

"What?" He muttered, but, at second glance, realized none of it had been directed at him. The entire conversation lay between the few feet seperating Kouji from Sasuke.

Kouji held up a photograph and threw it at Sasuke's feet. The vivid picture portrayed himself, hair tied back, after work in Sorano. Sasuke looked up at Kouji, who was now giving him a death glare.

_This guy's good_, Sasuke thought, not only does he have subordinates, _I didn't even see the photo until he threw it at me._

"No one beats up my team." Kouji seethed, cracking his knuckles, "except me. You desecrate this hair style. I'll teach you a lesson about picking on my friends."

"Sasuke," Sakura grabbed his arm.

"Don't do it!" She whispered. "Without the Sharingan, he'll-"

Sasuke held out a hand to silence her.

"On one condition," Sasuke called out to his challenger. Kouji looked at him suspiciously.

"What?"

Sasuke stitched his eyebrows together in unswayed determination.

"We'll settle this man-to-man. You don't touch my friends, I don't touch yours."

Kouji smirked.

"Agreed. Let us begin."

* * *

Author's Note: dun dun dun! Boy, that chapter was lame! I really expected it to go farther but the damn thing got so long, I just couldn't take it anymore! Besides, it took so long to write. I apologize for all spelling errors, my word processor just died on me. It won't spellcheck a damn thing anymore. Don't worry, it won't deter me from releasing chapters; it's just a major pain in the ass. I'd like to thank Tatsu no Houou for his support. I tortured him endlessly as we debated over the intricate details of this story, and, as a result, he now knows pretty much everything. Kakashi fangirls, don't kill him trying to find out when the man shows up! :P

About Kakashi: I've been getting a TON of questions about Kakashi. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about him. :3 who could? I happen to know the exact date, place and time where is actions will take effect, so relax! :P

About Kouji: Some people have asked about him and all I can say is: kukuku...... you'll find out about him when you find out about him. and I do love the mini ponytail. If you want to know what it looks like, see the back of Takuto's head from Full Moon wo Sagashite.

Next Chapter: A raging battle begins! An unexpected ally or a stingy double-crosser?


	27. Fundamentals

**Chapter 27: Fundamentals**

The water rippled as Sasuke and Kouji jumped down onto it. The circles spread and interlaced as the two combatants faced each other.

"Go Sasuke!" Naruto cheered from the bridge. Sakura glared at him and whispered harshly.

"Aoi! His name is Aoi!"

"Wha…?" Naruto stared at her blankly. "No, it's not. His name is Sasuke."

"Idiot!" Sakura whacked him on the head. "Don't mess around! This isn't the time to be funny." Her hands gripped the railing so tight the white stone began to crack.

Naruto smiled brightly at her.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan." He grinned. "Sasuke's not weak. He won't get himself killed."

Sakura blinked into Naruto's cheerful demeanor and sighed. He was right, even without Sharingan eyes and fire techniques, Sasuke was one tough customer.

_But is he tough enough?_

Below, on the left, Kouji stood confidently, but glaring intently. What kind of skills did he have?

Kouji held up a hand and one of the subordinates tossed him a shuriken holster, which he latched to his right thigh.

_Left handed…_ Sasuke thought mildly as he pulled a kunai free with his own left hand. Kouji had one as well now and they both glared at each other, waiting to see who would strike first. Kouji, however, didn't wait for a strategic leaf to fall. He charged water spraying from his feet. His path curved to the right, clearly aiming for Sasuke's unarmed side.

_Stupid,_ Sasuke sneered, _doesn't he see my shuriken holster?_

Sasuke gritted his teeth, withdrew a shuriken, and raised it to block, but Kouji had other intentions. Just as the metal objects were about to collide, Kouji dipped his kunai and pulled it up, wedging it's tip into the shuriken's hole.

Sasuke took the opportunity and swung with his left hand that the brown haired boy with his kunai. Kouji, still subduing Sasuke's shuriken with his kunai, spun, withdrew a shuriken swiftly from his holster and caught Sasuke's attack, not metal to metal, but right into the leather-covered handle.

They stood front to back; Kouji's ponytail tickled Sasuke's chin, both blocking the other.

Suddenly Kouji grinned and shoved his foot backward into Sasuke's stomach. The motion sent Sasuke flying backward, his kunai and shuriken flying forward. The weapons flew across the river, over the bank and landed securely, embedding themselves in trees. Sasuke skidded over the opposite bank before planting his feet to stop. He slowly regained his balance, holding a hand to his pummeled stomach. He glared out at Kouji, standing passively on the water, a shuriken in one a hand and a kunai in the other, a slight smirk on his face.

The kick was relatively light in comparison to some of those blows Sasuke had been dealt, yet a more disturbing factor played in his mind.

_This guy is really fast…_

"YEEAAAH!" The Hidden Cloud ninja cheered.

"That's the way, Kouji-sama!"

"You kick his ass!"

"No one messes with Lightning Kouji-sama, Leader of the Raibara!"

"Bastard." Naruto muttered between his teeth. "That was a cheap shot."

Sasuke walked back out onto the river and stood at the same level, but ten feet left of Kouji.

"I'm not done yet." Sasuke seethed.

"Good." Kouji taunted, "Neither am I."

Like a quick-draw, Sasuke whipped out a shuriken and flung it at his adversary. He didn't wait to charge until Kouji dodged it. Sasuke chased his shuriken and, when Kouji flicked his hand up to swat the shuriken away like a fly with his kunai, Sasuke was ready. He grabbed Kouji's wrist, before it could come down, and aimed a punch at his head. Kouji ducked out of harm's way as Sasuke's arm slipped passed, and brought the shuriken in his left hand back in preparation to strike Sasuke's exposed rib cage. Sasuke pulled his arm in reverse, slamming his elbow into the back of Kouji's head. Kouji buckled forward and lodged the shuriken into Sasuke's right leg, above his shuriken holster.

Sasuke gritted his teeth in pain as blood vomited from his thigh. He squeezed his hand tighter around Kouji's wrist and punched Kouji squarely in the jaw. The fore sent Kouji careening backwards, and the brown-haired boy followed it through, turning it into a no-handed flip and kneeing Sasuke in the jaw. Sasuke let go of Kouji's wrist and stumbled backward. Kouji finished off his back flip and rubbed the back of his head in pain, his nose bleeding freely. Blood from the both of them dripped down their sweaty features and disappeared into the water.

_Crap, _Sasuke cursed as he yanked the shuriken out of his leg, blood spewed forth like an uncorked champagne bottle. _I can't beat him like this. I have to use a technique… but what the hell can I use?_

Naruto and Sakura watch with grinding teeth as Kouji hurled another shuriken.

"Watch out, you idiot!" Naruto screamed. The silver metal star struck Sasuke in the forehead, or rather, passed through his forehead and hit and over hanging tree branch as Sasuke exploded like a waterfall. Water flew everywhere and even Kouji, wiping drops from his eyes, blinked in confusion.

"What the hell?" Naruto exclaimed.

"It's a Mizu Bunshin!" Sakura exclaimed as it dawned on her.

The wall of water evaporated to reveal the real Sasuke, hands clamped together, a small cut on his cheek from Kouji's stray shuriken.

"Tajyuu Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Like out of a graveyard, at least a hundred copies of Sasuke pulled themselves out of the river and all charged at Kouji.

"Gya!" Some of the subordinates cried, leaping on to the bridges railing. "We have to help him!"

"No." A stern, oddly familiar female voice spoke behind Sakura.

"But, Ma-"

"You heard him, this battle is man to man. Have you no faith in Kou?"

"Sakura-chan?" Naruto's voice pulled her away from that of the familiar speaker.

"What?" Sakura turned to look into his bewildered face.

"When did he learn that?" Naruto pointed to the melee beneath them. Kouji had plowed through most of the Bunshin already.

"Do you remember when we were in Wave country?" Sakura said. "We fought those weirdoes?"

"Oh yeah! That girl used the Mizu Bunshin! Sasuke must've copied it!"

The real Sasuke lay in wake, kunai poised, as Kouji tackled the last of the water clones. Sasuke had to admit, this guy was talented. Using nothing but nine shuriken and some fancy foot work, he'd defeated every Bunshin. Unfortunately, he'd only had nine shuriken to begin with, and they were all lodged in a tree or tossed into a bush, none in the water for easy access.

_Bizarre…_ Sasuke muttered to himself. _And I wonder why he doesn't use a technique…_

A toll had defiantly taken a toll on Kouji. As he finished off the last of the clones, he was covered in bruises and his breathing was heavy. So worn he was that he didn't even notice Sasuke sneaking up swiftly behind him until it was too late.

Kouji spun as Sasuke slashed with a kunai, slicing Kouji's chest. Hot blood spattered everywhere, mixing with Sasuke's and the water,

"Kouji-sama!" The audience roared as their hero hunched over his wound.

"Just give up." Sasuke muttered mercilessly. "You have no weapons and can't fight in that condition."

Kouji straightened a little and chuckled. Sasuke stared at him questioningly.

"Let's just say I'm not done yet." Kouji sneered. He slapped his bloody hands together and made a few hand seals. He didn't call out the name of the technique, but Sasuke could feel it. The air became spicy and sharp, the hairs on the back of Sasuke's neck stood on end, Kouji's much more so; Sasuke was positive if he didn't have that ponytail, he'd look like a porcupine.

Kouji stood up straight and held out a hand to the left bank of the river. Sasuke looked at the bank curiously. His shuriken, the one that had hit the tree, twitched, pulled itself out of the tree and flew into Kouji's hand.

_What the hell!_ Sasuke gawked widely as Kouji threw the shuriken at him. Sasuke knocked it away with his kunai and noticed to his astonishment that the shuriken stopped just before it hit the water and flew back into Kouji's hand.

Something sharp dug into Sasuke's back. He yelped in pain.

_The shuriken he threw at my first Mizu Bunshin!_ And Sasuke stood between it and its master. Sasuke looked around and noticed all the other shuriken returning to their owner from trees and bushes.

_None of them fell into the water…_Sasuke realized in horror. _This guy… he planned this!_

Every time a shuriken landed in Kouji's hand, he would immediately throw it and every time Sasuke knock one away, it would fly back to Kouji like a magnet. It became an endless volley; Sasuke lost track of how many there were, 10, a hundred, it didn't matter. Kouji could throw two at a time, while Sasuke could only hit one; he didn't have the time to reach for another weapon. His hands began to slice up, thin scars riddled his body and as Kouji approached him, they increased in number.

Kouji grew closer, three feet, two feet. Sasuke didn't have a minute to think about what he was doing.

Suddenly, the barrage of shuriken stopped. Sasuke's eyes opened wide in pain as Kouji's fist grounded itself in his stomach. White hot pain, like a first degree burn, shot through his arteries. For a moment, Sasuke felt like he was in Hell itself, then all went black.

-

"SASUKE!"

Sakura leapt down from the bridge, closely followed by Naruto. She ran up to the two boys and accepted Sasuke's limp form.

Kouji faltered backward and was caught by two of his subordinates.

"You two," the familiar female voice commanded as she stepped out onto the battlefield. "Get Kouji-sama to the hospital. I'll take care of the clean up."

Sakura looked into the face of the female speaker and gasped.

"Y-you!" She pointed at the girl.

Before her stood Madoka, Recently-Defeated-Karaoke-Champion Madoka. Her long, light hair had been pulled back tight and her eyes were sharp behind rectangular glasses. Her black uniform had a crisp and clean look, her rose button was displayed proudly above her heart and she wore her hitai-ate close around her neck. She looked nothing like the karaoke singer from yesterday.

"You know these people," Kouji wheezed in pain, "Madoka?" He gave her a suspicious look, like the parent that questions their teenager whom they_ know_ has pot.

Madoka pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"No." She replied curtly. The look in Kouji's eyes didn't falter, but he let it slide as he was carried away.

"You!" Madoka pointed to the peanut gallery of Raibara members. "Go back to the base. I'll take care of these three." The many ninja disappeared at her whim.

"You two." Madoka looked down the bridge of her nose at Sakura and Naruto as they cradled Sasuke's limp body. "Follow me."

-

Sasuke blinked. Or at least he thought he did. He couldn't tell in the darkness that surrounded him. Familiar voices echoed from somewhere above him.

"Thank you for letting us stay here." Came Sakura's voice from somewhere to his left. The darkness that shrouded him began to disappear into obscure blotches of color.

"Oh no problem, Akane-chan." A deep, unfamiliar male voice echoed from the same area Sakura's had. "You and your friends can stay here as long as you sing in the bar. It's a good thing Madoka-chan came to me so soon; this place is going to fill up like a drunkard's mug in the next few weeks, what with the festival and all. That hostel is going to be mighty crowded."

Sasuke tried to sit up, but a piercing pain shot out from his stomach. He yelped out in pain.

"Sasuke!" Sakura called out. He heard hurried footsteps as someone rushed to his side. He felt a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Stupid, don't try and sit up yet!" Sakura whispered, her voice marinated in concern.

Sasuke blinked as the darkness cleared, gritting against the pain and Sakura's berating, he sat up. He looked down at his hands as they swam into focus. His fingers, palms, wrists all the way up his arms were hidden within layers of bandage. In fact, as he now saw, most of his body was too. A large bloody patch smeared the white strips over his stomach; he could feel the hot moisture as he put a hand over it.

He took a quick look around the room. The small place looked like a modern bedroom with three beds, a closet, and a window with a balcony. Besides Sakura, there was only one other person in the room, a burly man in an apron.

"Oh, this is Futotta-san." Sakura explained, seeing Sasuke's gaze. "He's agreed to let us stay here for a while."

Futotta smiled and grinned.

"He owns the Karaoke bar I sang in last night and he's letting us live above it as long as I sing here."

"Ne? Akane-chan," Futotta called, "I have to return to the bar. Come down in about fifteen minutes and I'll set up the microphone for you."

"Hai." Sakura called as the owner left the room. She gave a sideways glance to Sasuke. The boy didn't respond, only glared darkly ahead of himself. Sakura gulped; she didn't like the look on his face; she didn't like it one bit.

"Excuse me," a stern female voice resounded from the doorway. Sakura snapped to look.

"You again!"

Madoka leaned casually against the door frame. Her light blonde hair had been freed of its ponytail and her glasses were gone, but everything else remained the same.

"What do you want?" Sakura hissed. She didn't know whether to appreciate or despise this girl. Madoka was a chief officer in Kouji's crew, yet it was her who had set them up with this arrangement. Madoka bypassed Sakura's question and walked up to Sasuke.

"You're not too bad." She muttered to him. Sasuke glared at her out of the corner of his eye. "Few people can hold their own against Kouji-sama, so I'll give you a word of advice." She glared like a killer down at Sasuke.

"Don't pick a fight with him." She raged, "You're lucky he didn't want to kill you, or you'd be nothing but a smear on the ground by now."

"What?" Sakura whispered. _This guy was only toying with Sasuke!_

Madoka turned around and casually walked back to the door.

"You people obviously aren't from around here," She sang. "or you'd know that Kouji-sama is the son of the Raikage. He's also the Hidden Cloud Village's youngest jounin." She half turned to face them. "He didn't have any intention of killing you today, only teaching you a lesson about the value of his crew. He's not a bad person, but I suggest, once you've recovered, you leave this place and never come back."

Sakura scoffed.

"Why are you helping us so much?" She muttered. "What's it to you if we pick a fight with him?"

"I want something in return, obviously." Madoka scoffed. "In exchange," she suddenly threw them another killer glare, "tell know one that I was ever here in Suiyo-Kame or at this Karaoke bar."

Sakura rubbed her head in confusion as Madoka left the room. If possible, their mission had just gotten a lot more complicated.

Sasuke continued to stare into nothingness. The words of Madoka meant nothing to him. Only one thing bothered his mind.

_That technique,_ Sasuke seethed, _what the hell did he use! _How was it possible to attract shuriken that way? And that was no ordinary punch to the stomach either. Sasuke's mind racked up a million questions and no answers and the more questions he came up with, the more pissed off he got. It didn't make sense. Nothing made sense!

"Sasuke, let me re-bandage your stomach." Sakura said pulling out a wrap and he smacked the roll out of her hand in frustration. Sakura held her hand, taken aback.

"S-Sasuke?" She muttered. Her bandage wrap flew across the room and was snatched out of the air by a hand. Both Sasuke and Sakura turned to see Naruto standing in the doorway carrying all three backpacks. His normal cheerful mentality seemed to have been washed away, for he glared at Sasuke with full seriousness.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Naruto met Sasuke's dark attitude and gave it a run for its money.

Sasuke didn't answer, only continued his sinister gaze.

"What a loser," Naruto taunted, "you can't even beat that one guy. So much for the clan of genius ninja." His words dug into Sasuke's pride like an ice pick. Sasuke gritted his teeth.

"Naruto!" Sakura cried. "What?"

"No wonder Itachi is still alive, if you're too weak to even defeat one ninja." The comment went too far. Ignoring his blinding pain, Sasuke leapt out of bed and lunged at Naruto, grabbing the boy by the collar.

"You bastard…" Sasuke shook with rage.

Naruto chuckled evilly.

"Now you're talking my language. Let's take this outside."

* * *

Author's Note: BWAHAHAHAHA! Feel my eternal love of cliff hangers! I'm so evil :3 Anyway, everyone thank you so much for reading my story. I hoped you enjoy the many, many twists this chapter had to offer. Now do you see I don't show some things for nothing;)

About Itachi: No sorry, it was indeed Sasuke in the photograph... However, I didn't show him in Chapter 6 for no reason. So keep him in mind. Like Kakashi, he's not doing nothing either. ;)

Next Chapter: Friend versus Friend? The secret to Kouji's technique is...?


	28. Epiphany

**Chapter 28: Epiphany**

Sakura scowled around the room at the many eager faces staring up at her as she adjusted her microphone. Sweat dribbled down the side of her face, partly from the intense spotlight glaring down upon her.

_Those idiots_, she wheezed as the speakers squealed, _if I didn't have work…_

Her expression changed from rage to worry as she hugged her mike with her palms.

_Please_, she begged, _please don't let them kill each other._

The faint sound of music drifted through the bar as Sakura fumbled with her emotions.

-

Sasuke glowered at his foe. A brisk wind passed between them, blowing their shirts around and mussing their hair. Grass billowed in the clearing around them, a hidden clearing, where no one would interrupt. The sun still beat down upon them as they glared each other down.

"Retard," Naruto snickered, "you can't beat me in your condition."

Sasuke seethed. The bandages covering Sasuke's torso dotted with splotches of blood, his stomach rebelled furiously to all movement, his veins felt weak and weary. But he had enough chakra left, mizu bunshin wasn't that difficult, and he planned to use every ounce of it. No one rubbed his brother in his face… except his brother. What the hell was Naruto trying to pull?

"Shut the hell up!" Sasuke snapped, clenching his fists. He charged at Naruto, full throttle, pulling back his hand to smack him in his stupid smirking mouth. Naruto jumped easily to the side, his own fist curving toward Sasuke's head.

_Sharingan!_ Sasuke's eyes flared red. He read Naruto's blow like a book, dodged easily to the left and out of harm's way. He grabbed Naruto's outstretched arm with his own and hurled the blonde over his shoulder. Sasuke could feel the raw cuts in his shoulders tearing, pain ripping through his upper body, and the torture sucked his strength and momentum. He practically dropped Naruto in mid-swing, Naruto landing easily on his feet, sliding a yard or so, but standing up, completely unharmed by the attack.

Sasuke wheezed and clutched this right arm, trying to shake off the pain and rethink his battle strategy at the same time. Even if the seismic toss had been carried through, Naruto would've recovered just as easily. Could he even win in this scenario?

_No,_ Sasuke seethed, there must be a way. _Naruto's not invincible; if Kakashi can beat him in my condition then there is a way! And I'll find it!_

Naruto glared at his friend, hunched and panting like a fat man after a 2 mile jog. Patches of red had soaked through the white bandages on Sasuke's shoulders. Naruto put his hands on his hips.

"Don't tell me you're giving up already." He threw Sasuke a "what-a-loser" look. Sasuke grimaced and snarled.

"I thought I told you to shut the hell up_!" If I'm going to beat him, it's not going to be by Taijutsu,_ he thought, my body can't take much of this.

Sasuke straightened himself out and clasped his hands together.

_A jutsu…_ Naruto thought. He knew which one too. He'd fought Sasuke enough times to know. Naruto clasped his own hands together as well.

Sasuke's blast came first.

"Goukakyu no Jutsu!"

The enormous fireball roared at Naruto like a bullet train. Sasuke watched as the flames engulfed his friend, turning the blonde into a puff of smoke.

_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu…_ Sasuke thought,_ Of course he used that._

He spun to blow flames in the face of another Naruto effigy, attacking him from the rear. He hardly had time to see it burst into smoke, when his Sharingan detected an attack on his left. He spat more flames at this, and was greeted with more smoke. Before long, he was spewing fire in every direction.

_Damn it…_ He cursed, wheezing with the effort of excess movement, _where's the real one?_

His flames had started to diminish like an appetizer. The flame got weaker and weaker, but luckily, so did the bunshin. They became sluggish and easier to follow, Sasuke no longer needed to exert in Sharingan so much.

Suddenly, a bunshin became unsluggish. It attacked Sasuke head on, aiming a punch at Sasuke's stomach.

_This is Naruto!_ Sasuke realized in an instant, but barely had time to dodge. He stepped back and Naruto's fist patted Sasuke's stomach with no greater power than that of a child's slap.

White hot pain seared through Sasuke's flesh. He doubled over in pain so quickly that his forehead rammed into Naruto's skull. The two boys tumbled to the grass, Sasuke clutching his stomach, Naruto clutching his head. The other bunshin disappeared into their traditional puff of smoke.

"Ow..." Naruto rolled upright and immediately stood up. He massaged his throbbing temple and looked at Sasuke, curled up on the ground, twitching in pain. He pulled his right arm out from under him and slammed it shakily upon the grass in a first attempt to get up. Sasuke trembled as he pulled his head up to glare at Naruto. A small drop of blood oozed from the corner of his mouth. Naruto cocked his head and glared curiously at his pathetic friend.

"Don't tell me you're giving up." Naruto muttered.

"Of course not!" Sasuke pulled his other hand out from other under him and smacked it against the dirt. He made a sad attempt to pull himself up, but ended up on the ground again. "I'm- I'm gonna… kick… your ass." He wheezed

"You should just give up." Naruto put his hands behind his head. "You can't even stand anyway."

"Never," Sasuke spat blood from out of the corner of his mouth and wiped his chin with a shaking hand. He began to tremble more as he pulled himself up again. "I'll never give up."

"That man…" He whispered, his voice shook like he was crying, but Naruto knew better. "That man took away everything from me… everything… from me…" Sasuke hiccupped blood onto the grass beneath him, before glaring up at Naruto.

"I'll never give up!" He screamed. "Not to him, not to you, not to anyone! I'm going to kill him if it kills me!"

Naruto gave Sasuke a half grin.

"Then why are you losing to that Kouji guy?"

"It's… it's not like he gave you a choice…" Sasuke wiped his chin again.

"Are you going to hold back when you fight Itachi?" Naruto looked into the sky.

Sasuke blinked incredulously.

"Of course not! I'm going to use everything I have!" He cried.

Naruto chuckled at the blue spread ahead of him.

"Yeah!" He laughed. "and nothing's going to stop me from becoming the greatest Hokage! No matter how long it takes, I'll do it! And I'll give it my all until the end and never stop fighting!" He smiled down at Sasuke. "So don't hold back anymore, Idiot!"

Sasuke blinked a little and grinned back at his friend.

"Yeah."

Naruto plopped himself down onto the grass and looked at the sky. Sasuke rolled over and did the same.

"You call me an idiot," Sasuke muttered, "You're the one picked a fight to prove a point."

Naruto laughed into the sky.

"Well, you're not one to sit around and listen to a person preach."

Sasuke blinked at the cloudless, endless blue. A small gradient of indigo had begun to spread over the sky, even a star or too had broken away from the sun's glory to wink down upon them.

"Naruto!" A familiar voice screeched from somewhere down the path to their left. "Sasuke!"

They both rolled there heads to look.

"Oi, Sakura-chan!" Naruto sat up and waved to her as they watched the girl dash toward them. "What are you doing here?"

As she reached them, Sakura doubled over, panting from her jog. She quickly recovered though, quick enough to dash Naruto on the head. Naruto found himself lying down again, and rather painfully too.

"Stupid!" She shrieked. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"It's okay, Sakura." Sasuke muttered sleepily.

"No. It's not." She reached in her pocket, pulled out a bandage roll and began work on Sasuke's reopened wounds.

"I hate it when you two fight." She whispered. "We're a team; teams aren't suppose to fight each other like that."

"Sorry, Sakura-chan." Naruto muttered, although he seemed hardly apologetic.

"Naruto," Sasuke muttered and winced as Sakura pulled the cloth tight around his arm, "you really think we'll go back to Konoha someday?"

"Of course!" Naruto stated as if it was obvious. "I told you, I have to become Hokage someday! I can't be Hokage here!"

"Yeah." Sasuke cracked a rare smile up at the sky. Sakura smiled serenely. Dreams; it was something she hoped never changed about those two. Her own dreams had morphed from when they first professed, years ago, before Kakashi-sensei. She discovered there was more to life than love, such as life itself, life she swore to protect in the two people she cared for most.

She was still smiling as she unraveled the bandage around Sasuke's middle. Her expression changed from bliss to disgust as she stared down at it.

"Ewww…" She muttered. Not that it was disgusting, Sakura had seen much more disgusting things in her vocation; it just looked like it felt disgusting. Sasuke and Naruto on the other hand, had never the opportunity to dissect a corpse. Both felt sick as they stared and the wound in Sasuke middle.

A large round red scar laced his thick abs like plastic. It was puffy, red and shiny like frosting on a cake and the skin was bare and raw.

"It's like … a burn." Sasuke muttered, remembering all the consequences of mishaps learning fire jutsus.

"It is one." Sakura said matter-of-factly. "When we can back, we'll have to put this crème on it… and don't go swimming anytime soon, okay?"

"Why do you have a burn?" Naruto scratched his head. "All he did was hit you."

"And the pattern in inconsistent with a burn," Sakura said, pulling more fabric over the scar gingerly. "Burn marks are usually pretty tame; they're localized in s single location. Like if you get burned with an iron rod, your scarring will look like an iron rod." She explained. "However, your scar starts from the point of impact and travels arbitrarily outward."

Both boys blinked at her; Naruto scratched his head, not fully understanding everything she was saying.

"I've seen something like this though."

The two both gave her double-takes.

"What?" Naruto muttered. "where?"

"On you, Naruto." Sakura explained as if this should've been obvious. "It looks like the scars you get after being pounded by Chidori, except the Chidori scars don't look as much like burns."

Sasuke stared up into the sky. More stars had begun to appear in the fading light.

_Chidori…_

Suddenly, he chuckled. Sakura and Naruto both gave him funny looks.

"I've figured it out." Sasuke announced. "I know the secret behind his jutsu."

-

The sun hadn't quite made up its mind, to set or not to set, as Kouji watched it from his large hospital window. The clean white room glimmered in the indecisive light. Kouji passed a hand over the stitches across his chest. They felt unnatural and gross; stitches always felt that way. And they itched. He longed to rip opened the protective bandage and scratch furiously at them, forgetting all consequences. But Kouji just nibbled his cuticles impatiently and stare blankly out the window on his right.

The door creaked on his right and gingerly whisper closed. Soft, but stern footsteps resounded a few times before stopping abruptly. He didn't need to look, only one person walked that way.

"Well?" Kouji muttered.

"The three miscreants have been secured in Suiyo-Kame." Madoka straightened rigidly. "Would you like for us to patrol the border in case they return?"

"Nah." Kouji muttered mundanely. "It's none of our jurisdiction who passes through this town. It's a village not a military compound. Anyone should be able to go and come as they please."

"Yes sir."

Kouji collapsed against the reclining back of his bed and lightly raked his fingernails across the bandages across his torso.

"That bastard." Kouji grumbled, as the urge to itch the wound gnawed at the back of his mind, then chuckled a little. "He almost beat me."

"He's gone now, Kouji-sama." Madoka reassured him. "It was a good fight; he fought well, but you fought better as always."

Kouji blew air out of his nose.

"No." He mumbled quietly. Suddenly, he lurched himself up, shocking Madoka slightly, and stared, hunched, at his palms.

"No," Kouji repeated. "It was a horrible fight."

Madoka blinked at her commander.

"What?"

Kouji continued to stare down at his hands.

"I think," He began, "I think he was holding back too." A mischievous grin curved over his face. "He's stronger than what we saw. He didn't want to hurt me and I didn't want to hurt him. That's not a good fight, Madoka-chan. I wonder if he would beat me in a no-holds fight…"

He looked at Madoka for the first time since she arrived. His eyes sparkled wildly with anticipation as the setting rays of the sun ricocheted off his back.

"A no-holds fight," He whispered, excitement electric in his voice. "Madoka-chan, I want to fight that guy again."

* * *

Author's Note: OOOoooOOO! Are you intriuged? Well, it was a pretty lame fight... I apologize. Not worth the wait, was it? But whatever. Do YOU know what Kouji's jutsu is? It's not rocket science... I think I gave away enough clues, so you should be able to figure it out. (actually, it should've been able to figure it out during the fight, but if you didn't, don't worry. You're not stupid. Besides I'm going to explain it blatantly later anyway.) Once again, I thanks everyone for their love and support and reviews and time spent reading this. (btw EfrainMan totally made my week with his review! Thanks!). If you have any questions about the story, feel free to email me or post it as a review. I'm also always open to suggestions, I can take a little critisizm... I think. :P. Until next chapter!

Next Chapter: To Deafeat Kouji! The training begins!


	29. Courtesy

**Chapter 29: Courtesy**

Three days passed and Sakura finally decided to let Sasuke train again. The bizarre wound on his stomach had turned into a discolored blotch; the many gashes had withered down into vague lines. After much pleading on the part of the two boys, Sakura finally caved and let them scamper off, yammering about the many ways they were going to kick Kouji's ass.

_It's hardly fair_, she grumbled as she walked down the whitewashed streets of the Hidden Cloud Village, _I'm doing all the work. They should be the ones buying food, not me._

It was just her luck that the only market lay in the dreaded Hidden Cloud. She couldn't send Sasuke or Naruto back here anyway. Kouji would probably beat up Sasuke again; Naruto would probably end up worse than Sasuke, knowing how well he stayed out of fights.

_If someone tries to start trouble with me, I'll just tell them I'm here for food._ She squeezed the shopping bag, her evidence, in her hand as it swung back and forth.

Sakura put a hand to her mouth as she giggled. She couldn't help it. As troublesome as it was to do all the work, it was worth it to see those two getting along. Sakura hated to admit it but Naruto's stunt really cheered Sasuke up. His determination was back; Sakura had even heard him laugh as he and Naruto dashed off to train.

Sakura was thinking so hard she plowed right into a ramen cart. The loud cracking of wood met her head.

"Ow!" She stuttered backward, rubbing her bruising forehead and grimacing at the vicious cart. "Ramen…?"

"Well, of course!" The proprietor whistled. "What else would it be?"

_Hmmmm…_

"I'll take three servings to go please!" She called, slamming her hand on the counter.

"Keke," the man chuckled, "I like your style, missy!" and he turned to the steaming pot beside him, scooping ladlefuls of noodles into plastic containers.

Sakura walked away happily, her groceries in one arm, a plastic bag full of ramen containers in the other.

_Well, I might as well get them a treat._ Sakura sang. _Good behavior merits rewards. They're both working so hard, no doubt we'll have Kouji's letter to him in no time! And then we can head off to Zosho and pick up that thing Kikyou-sama wanted me to have._

Sakura thought back to the small black scroll tucked away in the depths of her backpack. She knew for a fact what it was for; Zosho, the eternal archive, a giant locker for the Ninja Countries and a storage of their history. As a symbol of unification, each country had entrusted jutsu to this vault, as though to say "I trust the rest of you enough that we can all keep our jutsu in one place." Of course to access these jutsu, you needed both an Unseal and a key. Zosho security was the highest in the world and maybe only one person had ever broken in. (and all she managed to steal was something relatively weak). Along with the jutsu, there was supposedly an intensive record of history. Clans, bloodlines, wars and so on. The idea was that if the country fell, there would still be a record of it somewhere.

Sakura rubbed her chin. She had heard a rumor that Vaults 1-20 contained the worst of forbidden jutsu, the Armageddon stuff, but hers was Vault 26. What exactly was it that Kikyou wanted her to have?

The bags swinging freely from her hands, Sakura made her way to the edge of the village. As she crossed over the bridge, a shadow fell across her path. Sakura looked up and into the faces of three boys barricading her path.

_Great…_ She muttered to herself as she noticed the familiar black clothing, Hidden Cloud hitai-ates, and the rose symbol of Kouji's Raibara gang. She clenched her jaw.

"Excuse me," She smiled as sweetly as possible, "may I get by?"

"You were with the guy who hurt Kouji-sama!" The one in the middle, and apparently self-proclaimed leader, pointed a grubby finger at her. "You've got a lot of nerve coming back here!"

"I'm just here to buy some food." Sakura held up the bag to show them. "I don't want any trouble."

The leader flung a kunai at her. It missed her, but sliced through the weak handles of her outstretched grocery bag. The detached contents fell with a thud to the ground, vegetables and fruits rolling about over the white pavement. A vein throbbed in Sakura's forehead as she fumbled with her self-control.

"We don't give a shit!" The speaker cracked his knuckles. "We don't care if you're a girl! We won't forgive anyone who hurts Kouji-sama!" He hefted a large club onto his shoulder and charged at her.

Sakura blink as she easily dodged under a horizontal blow. He was hardly at the caliber of Sasuke or Naruto, people she was use to fighting. In a real fight, this would be a piece of cake.

_But I don't want to hurt them,_ she reminded herself as she dropped the ramen bag at her side. _I don't want to start the same thing with Kouji that Sasuke did._

The attacker sliced his club downwards. Sakura ducked, rolling under his arm and coming up at his back where twacked him across the back of them neck, sending a sharp, small electrical current racing down his spine. The boy tumbled forward, head over heels, sliding to a stop. He tried to reach for his discarded club, but found himself reaching with his foot.

"Y-you bitch!" He screamed as he did nothing but kick at an orange that fallen out her bag. "What did you do to me?"

"Well, that should be obvious." She sneered down at him as the abused orange rolled toward her. A yell echoed from behind her. Another attacker came swinging something at her. Sakura didn't stop to see what. She pivoted, kicking the orange at her attacker. The bright fruit smashed against his face with a sickening sklurching sound, juice and pulp splattering around like blood. He dropped his weapon and clawed at his dripping face.

"My eyes!" He bawled. "It burns!"

"Yeah, citric acid'll do that." Sakura scoffed. She doubted whether it would cause any permanent damage.

Sakura looked up from her two victims. A breeze blew through the street, knocking around the scattered groceries. Sakura rubbed the back of her neck. She had the growing suspicion that she was missing something…

_Wait! There were three attackers!_

Sakura spun and launched her red dagger at her blind spot. A swift moving creature leapt away as the knife smack the white stone bridge, shards on rock spitting forth as the road cracked. The figure landed easily on the railing wit, as Sakura realized in horror, the bag of Ramen clasped tightly in his hand. He inspected the contents like a scientist.

"Hey, that's mine!" Sakura bellowed at the pale sallow figure.

"Obviously." He muttered, sifting through the contents of the bag. "Well, not anymore. It's mine now."

Sakura thought quickly. This guy was good, better than the other two, but she was already sorting out his weaknesses. He moved like running water, like Lee's Drunken fist without the staggering. A Taijutsu type.

_He's fast so I won't be able to beat at Taijutsu… A Genjutsu should do just fine anyway…_

The boy chuckled.

"I see you've got three servings here." He sneered. "For your little friends too? How cute. Too bad they're both weak and pompous losers."

Sakura ground her teeth into her skull. The gentle fabric of her composure began to tear at the seams.

"Looks like they sent a little girl for revenge. HAHAHA!" He laughed into the sky. "Oh well, when they come for you, they'll be a piece of cake to rip apart."

He straightened, holding the ramen bag aloft.

"And then they won't be needing this." He tossed the entire bag, Ramen and all, into the river below.

Chakra flooded into Sakura's trembling fist. The tea kettle that was her anger began to sing. Forget the Genjutsu, she was going to make him pay the old fashioned way. She glared up at him.

"What's with the scary face?" He scoffed. "It's not very attractive."

Sakura struck the opposite railing with her knuckles. With a loud crack, the entire stone barrier dissolves like sand in water.

The bastard seemed unperturbed. He snickered and cracked his knuckles, menacingly.

Suddenly, as hand placed itself of the boy's shoulder. He turned to see who it was and found another hand, in the form of a fist, colliding with his cheek. The boy flipped over the road like a runaway Frisbee and did an elaborate face plant, sliding to where his disoriented friend was trying to rub his head with his knee.

Sakura blinked in astonishment. Before her stood the last person she expected to be helping her, the one and only Kouji. His brown hair shuffled around lazily in the breeze and he stood before them, one hand on his hip, massive bandages beneath an open shirt, looking disgruntled and disapproving.

"Kouji-sama!" The disoriented one called. "Wha-?"

"I specifically gave orders instruction you to not attack any of the three from the other day." Kouji hissed. "This is a village. We have no right to discriminate who passes trough it. Did Madoka not inform you?"

"N-No, she did."

"Then what is the meaning of this?"

The boy looked at the ground, as though looking for the words he'd lost.

"Enough." Kouji commanded. "I expect you all…" He looked from the confused lump, to the unconscious face-planted pile, to the one a ways down stream who had not yet realized he was washing his eyes out with ramen. "…to pick up all of this young lady's belongings and refund anything that was damaged. Understand?"

Without waiting for a reply, he turned to Sakura, a bright grin painted across his face.

"You'll have to excuse them, Miss, they're all very stupid."

"K-kouji-sama…"

Kouji ignored his subordinates and clasped Sakura's hand.

"You must allow me to repay you," He announced dramatically, "please, let us discuss it over tea." Without waiting for Sakura to even stutter a reply, he dragged her off into the village again.

A half an hour later, Sakura found herself in a wicker chair before a mesh iron table in the middle of an elaborate courtyard. The small quad was laced with cherry trees and koi-filled pounds. Song birds sang high all around them. Her dagger, groceries and compensation money for the ramen had all been returned to her. Sakura blinked at the tea cup in front of her and vaguely heard Kouji talking through her confusion.

"I can't tell you how sorry I am, some subordinates just don't listen to orders, that's what makes a bad subordinate." He was saying, reclining lazily into her seat and swinging his cup around like a sheet of paper. "It discourages me a little to think they're so misbehaved and what with the Summer Solstice Festival in less than two weeks. I hope they won't go around picking pockets and such." He gave a dramatic sigh.

"I have a question," Sakura muttered sternly.

"Shoot!" Kouji either didn't catch on to her seriousness or chose to ignore it.

"Why did you help me?" Sakura glared at him suspiciously. "Why did you bring me here? I'm an enemy, aren't I?"

"Maybe it's just because I enjoy the company of beautiful women." Kouji smiled brightly.

Sakura snickered.

"Don't think you can fool me with sweet talk?" She sneered. "I know you have a girlfriend."

Kouji's cup stopped in mid-sip. His eyes snapped to hers. For a moment his eyes showed an expression she couldn't quite understand. Had she expected him to act a little more sympathetic? Or concerned? It was more as if he was trying to read her as she was trying to read him. As he put the cup down and swallowed, he began to grin.

"You're quite smart for an outsider." He took another sip of his tea. "Knowing about her."

"It wasn't all that difficult." Sakura folded her arms across her chest and crossed her legs in a business-like fashion. "Considering that Akari-chan's the reason we're here."

Kouji's eyes became the unreadable kind again, although he showed a strong attentiveness. Sakura could almost feel him tense up. The position of power had been transferred; he was no longer the one calling the shots. Was he scared or just alert? Sakura guessed this unreadability was what made him an exceptional ninja.

His face became almost sinisterly serious.

"What does your being here have to do with Akari?" His voice carried no urgency or anger, much to Sakura's surprise, merely curiosity.

"Tell me why you brought me here first." She bargained. "I doubt you just want to sit down for tea."

Kouji smirked.

"Actually, you're right." He stared out over the patio. "I was hoping one of you would show up here. There's something I want to ask you." He turned his eyes back toward hers.

"Your friend, I want to fight him again."

If Sakura had been drinking the tea, she would have sprayed it all over him.

"Wh-what?"

"You're friend was stronger than that, isn't he? When he fought, he was holding back." Kouji blinked a few times. "I want to fight him in a serious battle, neither of us holding back."

Sakura gawked at him in amazement. He truly was someone to be feared if he could read people that well.

"I don't know if that's possible." Sakura sighed. "His true abilities are not something we can go flaunting about."

"Then let's arrange something." Kouji put down his cup. "If you worried about Hunter-nins or something, I can keep a secret. I could care less about where you're from or what you're running from. I just want a good fight."

Sakura stared at him quizzically.

"Why do you want a good fight so bad?"

Kouji laughed out loud and looked up at the summer sky.

"No one kisses your ass in a good fight." He muttered to the cloud. Sakura smiled.

"Alright, let's arrange something."

And when Sakura returned that evening, she brought home something greater than ramen.

* * *

Author's Notes: Firstly, I'd like to thank everyone for their support. with much thanks to everyone, NU has now reached 300 reviews! You guys make me feel special. If I could, I'd hug you all! Now some things about this chapter. It suddenly hit me that Sakura hasn't had a decent fight for a while, and much fewer fights that Naruto and Sasuke. Sakura fans I'm sorry! I love Sakura! She kicks ass (especially since recent chapters... NO SPOILERS) So I'll try to have her fight more.

About the Injury: I had a couple questions about Sasuke's wound, so here are the details: It occured as a result of a punch, no skin penetration, though it looks like a burn, rather than a bruise. And it doesn't look like a typical burn either. Burn marks are very conrtoled things. If you've ever burned a shirt with an iron you know what I mean: the burn looks like the iron spade. However, Sasuke's wound doesn't look like a fist, as on would expect. It sort of shoots outward, in an arbitrary flower-like style. If this still confuses you, don't worry. It'll make sense soon enough.

About a Return to Konoha: Sorry, I'm being mean and not answering that. XD

Next Chapter: Sasuke vs. Kouji! The Sequel! The secret behind Kouji's technique revealed!


	30. Electrocution

**Chapter 30: Electrocution**

Naruto and Sasuke lay head to head on the barren dirt ground like two spokes of the wheel of fate, which at the moment was about to turn in their direction. Their entire collection of weaponry, even some that couldn't even be considered weapons, lay scattered around them like fallen leaves. Lacerations covered both the ground and the two boys as they lay sprawled on the ground, wheezing and dirty.

Naruto chuckled slightly.

"Ready?"

"I don't have much of a choice." Sasuke muttered. "The fight is tomorrow. I'm ready whether I like it or not." He looked into a misgiving sun, slowly fading behind dark trees.

In less than twelve hours, the entire ordeal would be over. Sasuke has no intention of letting Kouji win, and then he'd hand over the letter and they'd be on their way to wherever they had to go next… Zosho or something… Sasuke had even forgotten the reason he was fighting Kouji in the first place. The only thing he knew was he needed to defeat him. Straight and simple.

"Sakura really went out of her way." Sasuke muttered mundanely. "Arranging something like this. She was so angry before."

"_The fight will be one on one," Sakura had announced, "to ensure this, Naruto and I will stay with Kouji's right hand people: Madoka and Mitsurugi. We will watch them, they will watch us."_

"_How do we know more of Kouji's men won't be around to ambush Sasuke while we're gone?" Naruto sneered, in total distrust._

"_I don't get the feeling he'd do that." Sasuke confessed. He could admit that Kouji was a decent person, but it didn't squelch his desire to kick his ass. Quite the opposite, actually._

"_Well, we won't be far away, just in case." Sakura reasoned. "This secures that the entire battle will be completely confidential. You can use fire skills and the Sharingan."_

But that alone wouldn't make the fight a piece of cake, Sasuke knew. He looked up, exhausted, into the deluded blue sky.

"That stupid Kouji guy!" Naruto cursed. "He spent the whole afternoon having tea with Sakura-chan! I swear if he even lay a finger on her, I'll…" Naruto let the threat hang in the air like a suicide.

Sasuke sighed.

"Don't worry, I'm sure nothing serious happened. Sakura's not so weak either."

Naruto chuckled. He knew that first hand.

"I will say one thing though…" In the approaching darkness, Sasuke could almost feel Naruto smile.

"If you don't beat him, I'll kick your ass."

* * *

The next day approached Sasuke like death. It crept up toward him slowly, showing itself periodically throughout the night and just when he thought the morning would never come a still ray broke through the surface of the horizon like a diver. 

The morning was typical. Aside from Sakura dropping a salt shaker and Naruto throwing Sasuke constant pointers like a coach before a big game, it was just a normal, extremely tense, breakfast. Around noon, they left their residence and met Kouji and his small crew at the arranged spot. After three or four minutes of exchanging heated glares, the pack split. Sakura and Naruto walked off with Madoka and Mitsurugi, leaving Sasuke and Kouji in the designated clearing.

They glared at each other. Fiery minutes passed. Kouji's shirt billowed in the summer breeze. The bandage around his chest still clung to his skin, but he stood as though it no longer hurt him in anyway.

Maybe some of Naruto had rubbed off during their training, but Sasuke felt excited and energetic.

"This won't be a repeat of our last battle." Sasuke sneered.

"I hope not." Kouji cracked his knuckles, "If I have another lame battle like that I think I'll die of boredom."

As a stray leaf blew threw the air, the two boys charged at each other, fists raised.

* * *

Naruto snarled at Mitsurugi. Mitsurugi snarled at Naruto. In the back of the karaoke bar, hunched over a small coffee table, the two boys glared at each other. Mitsurugi was a big kid, about a foot taller than the scrawny Naruto, and, in Sakura's opinion, was a little scruffy-looking, like he came from a town comprised of three people. He was a little bit tan and wore his black Raibara robes with the mark of some clan Sakura didn't know, though there was a large katana strapped to his back, not appearing to be carrying any other weaponry. Ironically, the same went for Naruto; his shinny, gold-hilted katana was the only instrument he was carrying (unless you counted the fork he was squeezing in his right hand), but only because he'd donated the others to Sasuke's worthy cause. 

Sakura sighed as she and Madoka watched the two boys.

"They could at least help us," Sakura muttered as she pushed a mop around the bar's floor and trying to make casual conversation with her partner, "It's not like we're getting to stay here for free."

The bar was closed. No one was there besides the four. It was a waiting room of sorts, the kind you had to clean yourself.

Madoka acknowledged that Sakura had talked to her, but didn't reply. In fact, the girl seemed to acknowledge very little. She kept looking at Mitsurugi suspiciously and seemed almost too busy with her chores.

"GRAH!" Naruto leapt up, his chair falling over behind him. Sitting and glaring had never been his strong point anyway. Mitsurugi did the same, grasping the hilt of his sword.

"You stupid! I'll kick your ass." Naruto roared.

"Bring it, you frikken shorty!" Mitsurugi hollered back. In a split second, Madoka had cleared the room and had her hand tightly grasping Mitsurugi's ponytail. He yelped in pain.

Sakura grabbed Naruto from behind; he flailed to no avail in her grasp.

"Leggo, Sakura-chan! This bastar-"

"Idiot!" She whispered. "Don't start unnecessary trouble." She looked across the table at Madoka, and glared.

_She was further away, yet she reached the table before me. This girl is good._

Mitsurugi made his own pleading attempts with Madoka, through she seemed unperturbed by his cries of pain.

"Madoka-chan-!"

"Fool!" She hissed, yanking his hair. "Kouji-sama explicitly told us not to fight."

Mitsurugi pouted, despite the pain in his head.

"You're no fun." He grumbled, glaring down at her.

"Fun has nothing to do with it." She replied coldly. "Let Kouji-sama do the fighting."

She roughly let go of his ponytail and walked away. Sakura stared at her for a minute, before realizing she was killing Naruto, and let him go. The boy collapses, semi-conscious, onto the table.

"Yeah, this battle won't take very long." Mitsurugi pulled his chair back up and sat down again. "Not with Kouji fighting seriously."

"Don't be so sure." Sakura stared down the bridge of her nose at him. "Aoi is fighting seriously too you know. He's not so weak either."

"We'll just see how weak he is." Madoka chuckled as she picked up her mop again. Misturugi snickered along with her then glared up at Sakura.

"Y'know, they don't call him 'Lightning Kouji' because he's quick on his feet."

* * *

Kouji caught Sasuke's fist. Sasuke caught Kouji's. They stoop in a barren deadlock, before leaping away from each other and resuming attack position. 

"Heh, I'm not taking any chances this time." Kouji whispered. He clamped his hands together and swiftly began to make seals, at least ten of them in rapid succession.

_Damn it,_ Sasuke muttered to himself, _He started before I could activate the Sharingan Doing that now would be wasteful and pointless. Whatever he's doing is complicated though, I have to stop him._

Sasuke began to make his own seals.

"Bunshin no jutsu." He muttered and a flimsy duplicate appeared beside him. _The best defense I have at this point._

Kouji's sealing stopped. Sasuke could feel the chakra permeate the air. He braced himself. He looked behind himself. Nothing, absolutely nothing.

But he didn't have time to contemplate it.

Kouji withdrew a kunai in each hand and charged at him. Sasuke pulled out one as well and instructed his double to do so as well. Kouji chose wrong, slashing through the bunshin first with the kunai in his right hand; but blocked easily with the kunai in his other hand as the real Sasuke attacked him. Kouji whipped his right hand around, stabbing at Sasuke's exposed stomach. Sasuke cupped his hand, snatching Kouji's wrist as the kunai hovered centimeters from his shirt.

A bead of sweat rolled down the curve of Kouji's face. He peered up; Sasuke's face remained hidden behind his bangs.

_Has he gotten faster…?_

Kouji, arms pinned by Sasuke's defense, fired a head-butt as his opponent's chin. They were too close together; it had to hit. But just as Kouji braced for the blow, his hair only met the wind. Sasuke ducked backward, slamming his knee into Kouji's stomach.

Kouji coughed as Sasuke crushed his gut, but took the opportunity to flip the kunai in his right hand and stab Sasuke in the wrist with it, making Sasuke let go of his captive arm.

Kouji stumbled backward, hugging his middle. Glaring at Sasuke suspiciously and coughing like a flu patient. The black haired boy looked up from his wrist (the blade had missed the main artery but the wound still hurt and bled profusely) and into the horrified eyes of his attacker.

Kouji spat a glob of blood out of the corner of his mouth. A dark red splattered against a tree and matched the color of Sasuke's eyes now glaring into his own.

"I get it now…" Kouji wheezed.

"I'm not taking any chances either." Sasuke muttered. He clamped his hands together, making seals.

"Goukakyu no jutsu!"

Sasuke spat a fireball in Kouji's direction. The huge plume of fire engulfed the clearing, scorching the surrounding trees and leaves.

The sky began to grow darker.

Kouji leapt up above the fire and, ignoring the scorching pain and his skinned burned, threw both kunai at Sasuke. He dodged them easily, but stopped fire breathing to do so.

Kouji hopped back to the ground and charged blindly at Sasuke.

_Dumb move, especially when I have these eyes…_ Sasuke snickered to himself. He caught Kouji's fist as if it were a butterfly. Kouji pulled another kunai from behind him and stabbed at Sasuke's stomach again.

_Heh, same old moves…_

Sasuke caught Kouji by the wrist, same as before, wincing against the bleeding pain in his own hand. Kouji grinned. Sasuke stared at him in question. Kouji dropped the kunai in his hand, swiftly pulled out a sutra from inside his long sleeve and plastered against the mesh on Sasuke's stomach.

What the hell? Sasuke foolishly let go of Kouji's fist to instinctively try and scrape the seal away. Kouji's free hand slipped downward, scooped up the fallen kunai and sliced upward. Sasuke barely moved in time, the kunai dug deep across his side, though not deep enough to kill, as was Kouji's intent. Sasuke reacted quickly, as Kouji's attack pulled the boy forward, Sasuke struck with his free hand, planting his fist into Kouji's cheek. The two boys stumbled away from each other, clutching their throbbing wounds.

Sasuke wheezed as he squeezed his middle. His mind wanted to worry about the blood pouring from his open wound, but there was a greater danger. Sasuke swiftly pulled out a kunai and began to cut away at his mesh shirt, around the mysterious sutra there. He'd never seen one like it before, was it an explosive? He wasn't about to wait to find out. He cursed as he tried to pull in off him, but the unbearable adhesive had forged a union against his skin too.

"It won't come off like that." Kouji muttered as he wiped blood away from the edges of his mouth. He began to make several seals.

Sasuke set his heated red glare on Kouji.

_Then I'll just have to make sure he doesn't use it!_ Sasuke hissed. He watched Kouji's jutsu intently as he raced toward his foe. His bloodline pulsed. He struck at Kouji, who abandoned his seals to block.

_Crap,_ Kouji muttered, _I only got halfway done. But this should be enough to use that technique._

"Seidenki Gyuujiru no Jutsu!"

The two kunai he'd thrown earlier came slashing at Sasuke's back, he dodged downward but they still managed to slice his shoulders. They caught Kouji too, one slicing his bicep, another, his cheek.

"Heh," Sasuke chuckled, as his sharingan eyes played back a recording of it to his mind. "I finally understand this jutsu." He smiled as he aimed another punch at Kouji, who caught it, sending more vibes down Sasuke's arm.

"It's electricity. Static."

"You're pretty sharp." Kouji smiled. The sky above them grew darker still with clouds. They swirled around above them like the apocalypse. Sasuke smirked as he kneed Kouji in the stomach again. Kouji slid backwards across the dirt ground, hunched over like an amateur snowboarder.

"Heh, a lot of people say that," Sasuke smirked, ignoring his own injuries.

Kouji coughed more blood on to the ground. And straighten up, still smiling. Sasuke realized his mistake instantly. He had kicked Kouji at a distance where he could finish the jutsu he started before. And he did.

"Ok, Sharp-san, taste what a true ninja of Lightning Country can do." The seals flurried across his hands. Visual, solid lightning, cracked over his hands. It sprayed out, tendrils grasping at all angles, too bright too look at yet too beautiful to not look at.

"Lightning Style!" Kouji shouted, making one last seal. "Raikou Hicchuu no Jutsu!"

The lightning amassed at his hands struck out, faster than even Sasuke's Sharingans could detect. The blade of light struck the sutra on Sasuke stomach.

Pain ripped through him. Sharp daggers of the searing pain pieced every nerve in his body. Sasuke screamed as though his entire soul was forcing itself out of his lungs to escape the pain.

Slowly the torture faded. Time and space dripped back into Sasuke consciousness. He found himself on the ground; how long he'd been laying there he didn't know. He wanted to keep laying there, never get up, just die. It would be so easy, all he'd have to do would be just close his eyes… and…

… _and nothing's going to stop me from becoming the greatest Hokage! No matter how long it takes, I'll do it! And I'll give it my all until the end and never stop fighting! So don't hold back anymore, Idiot!..._

The words leapt into Sasuke's mind and sparked a fire under the butt of Sasuke's will.

_That's right, _he coughed, beginning to pull himself up, _I can't give up! It's too soon. I can't lose to either of these idiots._ He stumbled to his feet and looked Kouji straight in the eye.

"Wow, you're still alive?" Kouji sneered. "I thought for sure you kicked it."

"Heh," Sasuke scoffed. "I'll never give up, especially to an idiot like you."

"Big words." Kouji put his hands together. "Let's see how long those words will last, shall we?"

_Shit, _Sasuke put a hand over his face as he thought. _In my current condition there's no way I could take another one of those._

Sasuke put his hands together. It was a long shot but it was worth a try.

"Raikou Hicchuu no Jutsu!" Kouji cried.

"Seidenki Gyuujiru no Jutsu!" Sasuke screamed.

_Wha..!_ Kouji blinked in astonishment.

The line of lighting snaked itself toward the seal on Sasuke's stomach, moving as fast as light. But halfway, it struck something else, a stray kunai Sasuke had summoned there.

Kouji blinked again as the kunai took the entire blow of the attack. Sasuke streaked across the ground, wasting no time, dashed up to Kouji. He half-cart wheeled and slammed his foot into Kouji's chin. Kouji flew backward a couple of feet, arched backward, blood flying from his gaping mouth, skidded across the ground and hit a tree with a sickening crack.

Sasuke wheezed and stumbled to the side, grasping his freely bleeding side, and glared at his victim. Kouji twitched, wincing. It didn't look like he could move anymore. Leaves floated down around them. The sky had become nearly black with ominous clouds. A think drizzle of blood cascaded down Kouji's head.

"This is my victory." Sasuke wheezed.

Kouji coughed up blood and raised his trembling hands.

"Don't be so… sure… you bastard." He sputtered, making a single seal.

Sasuke stared at him as though he was crazy.

"You-"

"Lightning Style." Kouji whispered. "Shuurai… no jutsu…"

A large crack erupted from the sky above. Sasuke looked up at the dark clouds and realized the technique to his horror. The seals Kouji made at the beginning of the battle… this was it…. There aren't dark clouds like this in the summer…

Small feelers of thunder and lightning crawled their way over the clouds. Sasuke sighed.

"Thank you…. Kakashi-sensei…" He muttered.

A bolt of lightning blasted the ground from the sky. The boom cracked the ground. The light turned everything into a silhouette. Like a nuclear explosion, the clearing was ripped apart. Kouji didn't even try to shield his eyes. He relaxed against a tree, torn between extreme pain and the satisfaction of victory. But out of the blaze, one word cracked his ambition.

"RAIKIRI!"

The lightning bolt twisted and writhed. Sasuke thrust his arm into it, Chidori singing in his ears. He could feel his arm cracking, the bone giving way, but he held his ground.

_I will never give up! Not to you, not to anyone!_

The entire clearing exploded. Kouji tried to brace himself from the rocks and dirt that flew in every direction. Huge plumes of smoke billowed out of the area, the brisk summer wind carrying it away. The dark clouds in the sky began to grow holes, clear, fresh light pouring through the tears in its cottony fabric. The smoke became a haze, and in the sullen mist, Kouji could see a figure coming into focus.

Sasuke knelt, clutching his arm, in the middle of the clearing. All else had been stripped of its very existence. An enormous burn mark spread outward around him like a flower or a firework. Kouji gawked and couldn't help but smile.

"This is my loss." He called spitefully. "You win. What is it that would want from me?"

Sasuke looked up in a daze. The words seemed unreal, like he'd read them or something. Suddenly he looked up into the sky. A small beam of light hit his forehead and gradually got bigger.

A kunai, with some manner of paper attached struck near Kouji's head. Kouji craned his neck to see his own name scrawled in very girly handwriting.

"It's yours." Sasuke muttered, not taking his eyes off the sky. "I'm just here to deliver it."

Kouji blinked, as looked into the surfacing blue as well.

The sun was still high in the sky, like a beacon of a new day.

* * *

Author's Notes: w00t! It's OVER! I hope it was well worth the wait! I know it wasn't as good as past battle scenes, but you know these crazy things are never easy. :) Once again, I would like to thank everyone for they're continuing support! I love you all. :) And I'm rather curious to know how you came across this story. I know it's endorsed by the NaruSaku community but, as you can tell, it's hardly a NaruSaku fic. Word of mouth? randomness? O.o anyway, thank you once again! and I'm sorry if Sasuke's character isn't up to par.. sorry, sorry. :X! 

Next Chapter: Akari's letter! and what's all this about a festival?


	31. Stationary

**Chapter 31: Stationary**

"You retards!" Kouji grabbed Naruto by the collar and twacked him one to the head. "Why didn't you give me this letter sooner?" and he weakly began to kick Naruto's shins.

"Ow! Why the hell are you beating on me?" Naruto cried, resisting the urge to strike back. "I didn't do anything!"

The courtyard of the Raikage's abode was alive with Kouji's antics. A few days after the battle, the Raikage's son had invited them over to "make amends", although it was hard to tell considering the abuse he was giving poor Naruto. Kouji hobbled all around the courtyard on his crutches after the fleeing blonde, Sakura, Sasuke, Madoka and Mitsurugi watching benignly.

"That's it!" Naruto hollered, wheeling around to face Kouji and reaching to his back for his sword. Before he could withdraw it, a cookie smacked him in the head.

"Ow!"

"Don't even think about it, Naruto!" Sakura lectured from her seat at the small, round porch table, where she was bandaging Sasuke's wrist.

"I forbid you from attacking injured people!" She snapped as Naruto rubbed his bruising forehead.

"But, Sakura-chan…" He whined, easily dodging as Kouji lashed out with his crutch.

"No buts!" She pouted. "If you attack him, he'll probably die."

"I don't see why that would be so bad…" Naruto muttered under his breath.

"Naruto!"

"Fine, fine." Naruto sulked and danced around Kouji's crutches.

Sasuke passively stuck a cookie in his mouth. Such foolishness… But he was glad Naruto was getting a taste of his own medicine for a change. Though he wished they didn't have to be so loud about it.

"Kouji-sama," Madoka muttered sternly, sitting on her ankles on the shaded porch, elegantly sipping her tea. "Please stop trying to kill yourself."

"Indeed." Mitsurugi nodded, sitting beside Madoka, mocking her posture and her tea-sipping technique. "You shouldn't be so immature, Kouji-chiin."

"Oh like you're one to talk." Madoka hissed, a vein throbbing in her forehead. "You nearly got into a fight with that guy too!"

"Well," Mitsurugi rubbed his chin in a faux-scholarly manner, "he is indeed very erksome."

"Hells yeah!" Kouji hobbled over and slapped Mitsurugi a hive-five above Madoka's head. The girl looked to be the most erked of the three.

"What was that!" Naruto hollered and began to chase them around the yard, Kouji poised on Mitsurugi's shoulders, waving a crutch in front of him, both of them laughing like maniacs.

Delivering the Letter had been surprisingly uneventful. Kouji had even invited them to read it themselves:

"_My Dearest Kouji,_

_You stupid!  
Of course, I'm fine!  
Use some common sense.  
Well, I just wanted to let you know, so don't worry anymore, k?  
Everyone here on the island is good too.  
Right now, it's getting really hot around here.  
Even in the Hidden Cloud, I bet it's really sunny.  
Rain will come soon, you think?  
I miss you.  
Great weather isn't the same without you around.   
Hurry up and take a vacation or something.  
Then we can walk on the beach together like you promised._

_Furthermore, it may not be necessary.  
Right now, I'm planning on coming up and visiting you.  
On June 18th, I'll be there, and I'll stay for the whole festival.  
Madoka-chan and Mitsurugi-kun will be there too, right?  
Summer Solstice Festival isn't the same without them.   
Aoi-kun, Kimaru-kun and Akane-chan should stay for it too.  
Nether less, I'll be there to show them around and stuff.  
Don't pick on them!  
They're the good people who saved me from Usomaru.  
Oh well, I'll talk to you more when I get up there.  
Don't forget to be nice to Aoi-kun, Kimaru-kun and Akane-chan!  
Usomaru is in prison now, so stop worrying.  
Say Hi to Madoka-chan and Mitsurugi-kun for me.  
To you, whom I love, I shall see you soon._

_Love, Akari."_

"That's it!" Naruto had exclaimed. "That's not cool!"

"Idiot," Sasuke muttered, "You can't expect everything to be S-Ranked ANBU-worthy."

Naruto glared at him.

"Bastard! It could at least have been more interesting!"

Kouji, who up to that point had been staring inanely into a koi pond, deep in thought, suddenly jumped up.

"What you mean 'more interesting'! She's coming to visit!" and then he began to take his frustrations out on Naruto.

"Mitsurugi," Kouji muttered. After running around for half an hour, the large boy had finally collapsed into a heap on the grass and immediately became subject to many merciless kicks from Naruto. "I have a favor to ask."

"Shoot." Mitsurugi wheezed under Naruto's attacks.

"Would you mind heading down to Sorano?"

"You –ow- want me to –ow- go today? What for –ow-? We –ow- still have a couple more days before –ow- Akari-chan –ow- arrives."

"Well, I do, of course want you to pick her up. But would you mind conducting a little investigation for me?"

"-Ow! Goddam it you little punk!- What kind of investigation?"

"I want you to look into the actions of Ku. I have reason to believe he's acting outside the interest of the group."

Mitsurugi looked up from the headlock he had wrestled Naruto into.

"Ku?"

"Yeah, do you mind?" Kouji propped himself up on his elbows. Mitsurugi dropped Naruto and gave Kouji an obviously fake salute.

"Of course, 'Kouji-sama'!" He called sternly, then shot a playful look at Madoka. The vein in her forehead protruded more, but she merely sipped her tea benignly.

Mitsurugi pick up his sword and passed by her as he headed back into the house.

"See you guys later," he announced as he pulled the paper-screen door open.

"Thanks, Mitsurugi." Kouji called at his friend's back. Madoka continued to sip her tea.

"No problem." And with that, Mitsurugi disappeared into the house. They vaguely heard the front door open and close as well before continuing their conversation.

"That was awfully short notice," Sakura pointed out in awe.

Kouji hauled himself up to a sitting position.

"Yeah, that's the kind of guy Mitsurugi is, I guess. Never wastes a moment." Kouji stretched his arms out. "And we shouldn't either. We have lots to do before Akari-chan-"

There was the loud, disrupting noise of a tea cup being slammed onto hardwood flooring. All eyes turned to Madoka, who immediately stood up.

"Excuse me, Kouji-sama." She proclaimed, "But I believe I have the evening off."

"Er…" Kouji scratched his head; he looked almost bewildered. "Of course, Madoka."

Without another word, she turned tail and exited the courtyard. Kouji continued to rub his head curiously.

"Ha!" Naruto jumped up from where Mitsurugi had dumped him. "Now you're out-numbered!"

"Idiot." Sasuke scoffed, wiggling a cookie between his lips passively.

"Stop being such an ass, Naruto!" Sakura berated.

"'Out-numbered'? We'll see about that." Kouji propped himself up on a crutch and smirked snidely. "C'mon, I have work to do; you guys wanna see the secret base?"

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura exchanged questionable stares and followed Kouji as he hobbled off in the opposite direction from Madoka.

* * *

Even with his crutches, Kouji wasn't so easy to keep up with. They had to power walk to keep up with him as he lead them through the alley ways of the Hidden Cloud Village . At all times, Naruto Sasuke and Sakura felt unseen eyes upon them as they slid through the maze of back roads and slipped through fences, They finally came to a small circular clearing, where there was a large pot hole. On either side of the opening, stood two guards, each around 14-15, wearing traditional Raibara black.

"Wait," Sakura stopped as Kouji began to lower himself into the hole.

"What?" Kouji looked around slightly, as if expecting to see something.

"Your base is in a _sewer_?" She exclaimed in obvious disgust.

"Yeah." Kouji responded, like anything other than a sewer-base would be crazy, stupid and uncool. With that he dropped down into the darkness below.

While the guards peered down, asking whether Kouji-sama was okay (with his injuries and all) and as Sasuke made ready to descend, Naruto turned to Sakura.

"What's wrong, Sakura-chan?" He asked as Sasuke jumped down behind him. "Scared? Don't worry! I'll protect you from crocodiles and things."

"Idiot!" Sakura snapped. "Just get down there!" and with that, she practically threw him into the hole. Sasuke side-stepped as Naruto planted his face into the concrete below.

Sakura sighed. _Boys!_ she exclaimed, _they have no idea what hygiene is!_ Suddenly she felt very sorry for Madoka.

She dropped into the darkness, expecting the sight to make her puke and the smell to knock her unconscious, but, to her astonishment, it wasn't even dark.

Lanterns lined the walls of a surprisingly sanitary tunnel. Sure, it wasn't clean enough to eat off and it didn't smell like a bucket of roses, but there were no smudgy globs encrusting the walls and no port-o-potty sewage slime running through the passage. In fact there was no liquid of any kind flowing through the duct, only a paved surface.

"Wow…" Sakura sighed in amazement.

"What? Not what you expected?" Kouji grinned as he led them down to the right.

"Well, yeah." Sakura muttered, still looking around for filth. "I thought it would be… you know... a little more like a sewer."

Naruto grumbled something about crocodiles and then glared at Sasuke for no apparent reason. Sasuke, walking in his typical I'm-too-cool silence, glared back out of the corner of his eye.

"What do you take us for?" Kouji replied, pretending to be offended. "Besides, Madoka and the other women in the group would kill me if I made the base nasty."

_I can imagine…,_ Sakura muttered to herself.

They followed the tunnel for several more feet, occasionally bumping into a random subordinate, who would salute and Kouji would order to "call the others."

"This place is the sewer for abandoned apartment complexes." Kouji continued to explain. "So they're no longer in use. We use the other sewer lines for quick passage to different parts of the village, and, trust me, those ones smell."

A young girl dashed passed them, stopping briefly to salute Kouji.

"Oi," He called to her as she began to run off again, "pass on the message. We're gathering in ten minutes. And, tell Tarou to meet me in three." The girl saluted again and ran off.

They finally reached a door in the tunnel, like a maintenance room, nothing special, except this seemed to be the epicenter for all the commotion. People dashed in and out of it, some going back the way Naruto and the others had come, some running off in the opposite direction. Two boys were guarding this door as well, though they didn't seem as strict as the ones at the pothole. They saluted as Kouji passed by them mundanely.

"These three are with me," he made known to them and they didn't give Naruto, Sasuke or Sakura a second glance as the three passed behind Kouji.

They entered a circular, dank room, lit with lanterns like the tunnels around them. The arced walls were lined with desks, each with its own "teller", and were covered in what looked like small wooden plaques. Each plaque had a name scrawled upon it, some names were red, but most were black, and they were suspended on nails, as though they could be easily removed at any given time. About a quarter of the room, directly in front of them, had been sectioned off by a folding screen and a faded red pathway led from the door where they stood to directly under this screen and beyond, like the red carpet of a celebrity.

People dashed back and forth in this room around the tables, sometimes in groups, picking up things, dropping off things, being all-around busy, but not too busy to salute Kouji as he walk down the red aisle toward the folding screen. The leader pulled back the screen, holding it open for Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura, and then shut it firmly behind them. The three strangers stepped into the section and gazed around it as Kouji casually made his way around. Honestly, the fragment wasn't much different from the rest of the room, except there were no bustling people running to and fro. The faded red road lead them right into the base of a 9-inch high platform, upon which was a large table, covered in at least three stacks of paper. Kouji looked at it in disgust.

"Geez…" He grumbled as he stared as his work load, then turned around and smiled brightly at his guests.

"Well, what do you think?" He chuckled. "Welcome to the Raibara Secret HQ!"

All three scanned the place briefly.

"It's so lame." Naruto scoffed. "There's nothing cool about a stupid sewer and a table." He pouted. "You could've least put it in a tree or something."

Kouji crutched himself over to Naruto and grabbed the boy's cheek.

"You idiot! We couldn't conduct an operation like this from a tree. It's not a secret club house! Don't come to somebody's home and criticize it! Don't you have any manners!"

Naruto grabbed Kouji by the cheek as well.

"It's your fault for making it so lame!"

They pulled evilly at each other's faces.

Just then a passive-looking boy, the kind who looked like he never seemed to take much interest in anything, folded the screen door to the side and poked his head in. All for of them blinked at him for a minute.

"Ah, Kouji-sama," He mumbled, "I thought I heard you in here. You just missed Mitsurugi-taichou; he was here about a minute ago."

Kouji let go of Naruto's face and cleared his throat in a dignified fashion.

"Yes, Tsubara" He proclaimed, straightening out his shirt a little. "He will be in Sorano for a time."

The boy blinked passively. Sakura took this for curiosity.

"I'll explain more later. Anyway, has Tarou-kun shown up yet?"

"Yes, he just ran in." At that moment, the face of a young boy, one Naruto and Sasuke recognized from the youth hostile, shoved Tsubara out of the way. The heard the two heads collide with a sickening crunch, and, while this newcomer seemed unperturbed, Tsubara fell back on the other side of the screen.

"Sir, you wanted to speak to me, sir!" The young boy wheezed.

"Ahhh…" Kouji said briefly craning to look over the youth's shoulder, eyeing Tsubara's unconscious form suspiciously. "Yes, please come in Tarou-kun."

Tarou stumbled slightly over Tsubara and closed the screen behind him. He wheeled around standing at attention nervously, like someone had just rammed something up his butt.

Kouji crutched himself up onto the platform supporting his desk and consulted the wall behind it. Three plaques were pinned there, one labeled "Mitsurugi on the left, one labeled "Madoka" on the right, and one labeled with his own name in the middle, raised slightly higher than the other two. Mitsurugi's and Madoka's were fairly larger than those on the other side of the room, and Kouji's was fairly larger than theirs. Both Kouji's and Madoka's names were black, but, as Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura immediately noticed, Mitsurugi's name was red.

"Geez, she didn't even flip her name over…"

Kouji pulled Madoka's plaque off its nail and flipped it over, revealing her name also in red on the back, and replaced it this way on its post.

"Tarou," he called, before turning around. A bead of sweat rolled down the side of young Tarou's neck and he gulped. "You know you're mission. Madoka-taichou left around 30 minutes ago on route to Suiyo-Kame; if you leave now, you should be able to follow her without incident. I will expect a full report by the end of the night."

Tarou's face fell slightly. The look of confused distress covered him for a moment, but disappeared as he saluted Kouji.

"Yes sir!" He called and he turned on his heel and dashed out through the partition.

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura blinked at the screen door for a second before turning to look at Kouji. The older boy picked up a paper from his piles and grimaced at it.

"Wait a minute…" Sakura gasped "You're going to have her followed!"

Kouji continued to stare that the piece of paper in his hand, although Sakura doubted how interesting it was. Slowly, he put it down and picked up another.

"You bastard…" Naruto stepped forward, his hands clenched. "How could you do something like that!"

Kouji wheeled around and hit Naruto in the head with a glare of absolute rage.

"Don't talk like you understand the situation." Kouji snapped mercilessly. Naruto ground his teeth and didn't back down.

"How the hell am I suppose to understand it then?" Naruto cried, his fingernails biting into his palms.

"We can make as many judgments as we want." Sasuke sighed and put his hands in his pockets. "If you want us to understand it differently, you'll have to explain it differently." Kouji eyed Sasuke with the same glare he'd given Naruto, but sighed with the realization that Sasuke was indeed right. He crumbled down into his chair and rested his forehead in his hand.

"I wouldn't have to have her followed if I knew what she was doing." He sighed, tense and stressed.

"Why don't you just ask her?" Sasuke asked snidely.

"I have." Kouji muttered exasperatedly, "She says it's none of my business… but it is, isn't it? I know she goes to Suiyo-Kame; that place is dangerous. If she's doing anything… questionable there, it would ruin the reputation of the Raibara group."

Kouji leaned back in his seat and stared at the rounded ceiling. For a moment it seemed like he had aged 20 years.

"No…" He muttered softly, "I need to know, because she's my friend. If she's in trouble, I need to know… so I can help her…" Kouji seemed lost for a moment, and if Sakura didn't know better, alone.

"Why doesn't she trust me anymore..?" He whispered to himself.

A still, conscious silence fell over the room, as though something important had just gotten up and left. Kouji continued to look up at the ceiling, lost in his own thoughts. Sakura clenched her hands to her chest. She looked down at the floor. She'd seen this situation before.

"Stupid!" Naruto hollered, the atmosphere not penetrating his think skull. "That doesn't make it okay!"

"Shut up, Naruto!" Sakura screamed. She squeezed her shirt harder.

"S-sakura-chan?"

It hurt. She could feel in beneath her sternum, right into her muscle tissue, Kouji's pain as well as her own. She'd been in that situation, hadn't she? Hadn't she been willing to do anything to find out Naruto's secret, even if it had been against his will?

"_I need to know so I can help him!" She screamed._

"It's… not like that," She choked, "It maybe wrong… but it doesn't make you a wrong person for caring… does it?" She wiped her eye on her knuckle.

"Gah!" Naruto yelped, "Sa-Sakura-chan, don't cry! I'm sorry, I didn't mean it!"

"I'm not crying! Stupid!"

"Gah! Leggo!"

Sasuke stared up at the ceiling, at the many piled that made it up, over the sound of his teammates arguing.

_Caring about someone enough to risk hurting them…?_

"Huh…" He smirked, "Forget about it…"

Sakura looked up from her busy task of pulling Naruto's cheeks apart.

"You say something, Sasuke?" She tugged twice more on Naruto's face before letting him go with a snap.

"No," Sasuke replied as he stepped forward. "Anyway, enough with this. I'm sure it's some sort of stupid misunderstanding between you and her," He told Kouji passively.

Kouji smiled sadly.

"Yeah." He remained silent, as though thinking it over and then slammed his hands on his desk. "OK, back to work!" He announced.

"Speaking of which," Sakura cupped her fist in her hand. "I have to get back to the Karaoke Bar."

"Awwww…" Naruto sulked, "That's no fair…"

"Hey!" She scolded and pulled his cheek once more, "You want to eat tonight?"

She waved goodbye to her teammates and hurriedly took her leave.

Suddenly, a mischievous grin spread over Kouji's face as he was left with only Naruto and Sasuke.

"How do you two like paperwork?"

* * *

Author's Note: FINALLY! It's done! Took me a frikken lifetime, but now time to party! Yay for long chapters. By the way, I do, in no way, condone salking. Stalking is creepy... ews... so don't do it:Makes a mental note to leave Oralndo Bloom alone: ahem... ;). Anyway, I'm glad you liked this chapter! If you didn't... then oh well! XD Thank you everyone for your feedback in my ... er... poll? It looks like most people found this story the old fashioned way. Alright!

About the Letter: PFFT! You guys really think it'd be as lame as it sounds? Of course there's more to it than meets the eye! Can you find it, the "secret message"? Hint: This should be HELLA easy for Death Note fans! (I didn't plan it that way but whatever XD ). If you found it, feel free to post it, or tell me about it. I will announce the key at the beginning of next chapter... (though most of you should be able to figure it out.. >.>;; ). Gambatte!

Next Chapter: Sakura confronts Madoka? And why is a Festival Rep. looking for her? Also, the answer to the letter riddle... kukuku...


	32. Audition

And now... the answer to the last chapters riddle!

The answer is: "You were right. From sand to dust"  
(Key: read the first letter of every sentence)

Hey, I said it was there, I didn't say it would make sense. XD Don't worry, it'll will later... probably...

Most everyone got it! WOOT! Congrats to those who got it! and for those who didn't, don't worry! There are plently of other things to look out for! Keep sharp! Now on to the story!

**Chapter 32: Audition**

And so what did they do?

Naruto and Sasuke sifted through papers all afternoon long and into the evening, Kouji persisting them with a constant guilt trip.

"If you do this for me, I'll let you stay at my place during the festival. And, as the Raikage's son, I get special privileges like a spectacular view for the fireworks. Besides, wouldn't it be nice to give poor Akane-chan a break for a change. She works sooooo hard for the two of you ungrateful slobs to stay in Suiyo-Kame, I bet just one time-"

"Okay, okay, we get it!" Sasuke grumbled, picking up a stack of papers and a pen and setting himself against the wall. "We'll do it I guess." He looked over at Naruto for mutual constent, and found the boy in tears.

"P-poor Sakura-chan!" He wailed.

Sasuke threw his pen at him.

* * *

Sakura ran with everything she was made of out of the Hidden Cloud Village and down the road to Suiyo-Kame. 

_I'm sorry, Naruto… Sasuke…_ she whispered in the back of her mind. _Even after I said that friends don't lie to each other…_

In truth, there was no work waiting for her at the Karaoke Bar. It was Open-Mic Night, followed by the weekly Karaoke contest. In addition, as an employee of the Bar, she was forbidden from participating in both events.

_But Madoka will be, _Sakura thought. She had a couple of questions for the girl; it didn't match up. Why didn't she want Kouji to know about where she went? She didn't sing badly; it didn't seem like a big deal.

_But something _is_ a big deal, _Sakura cringed, _and I have a general idea of what it is…_

The white cobblestones clacked beneath her shoes as the beat upon them like rain. The slowly darkening trees smeared past her and the general traffic, people with dango carts and tourists, threw her daring stares. Sakura nearly bumped into a few of them in her madness and just when she thought the white trail would never end, a few iridescent lights of Suiyo-Kame burst through the horizon like lightning in a thunder-struck sky.

Sakura tripped herself around drunken merchants and regular tourists and stumbled her way off to the karaoke bar. She could here it before she saw it. The invasively loud music thudded gently against her bones like a second pulse. The bright day-glow pink sign labeled "Open Mic Night" splashed through the dim colors of the crowd. Someone singing inside wailed miserably, voice cracking over every syllable. Sakura covered her ears and winced as she pushed her into the throngs of jeering people and stumbled into the bar. She found herself mashed against someone's back, as someone mashed against hers.

"Excuse me." She muttered, pushing against her sandwich. Slowly, she wriggled her way to the wall, where she found a chair to stand on and look out over the sea over heads. Madoka's platinum blonde stood out no where, but the short little boy, Tarou, engraved an indent in the crowd of taller people. Sakura knew where her target was.

The musical abomination on stage hollered to a halt, bowed and fell over into the crowd as he was hit in the end with a beer can.

"Heh…" the announcer rubbed his cheek with his index finger. "Well, moving on! Our next performer is Madoka-chan! Back with a vengeance!"

The crowd screamed as Madoka stepped on stage. Sakura cover her ears against the din.

Madoka padded gingerly across the wooden floor and cupped the microphone in her hands. Her long, wavy hair bounced around her like a halo and Sakura braced inwardly, her face heating with her insecurities about herself. She pouted.

Madoka parted dainty, pale lips, which mere hours ago had been so thin and stern, and let the word flow like honey from her mouth.

Although, it was a different song from last time, the general message was still the same: lost love, unrequited feelings, so on and so forth. The lyrics were so sick and sappy they almost made Sakura sick, but Madoka's voice ironed them smooth and made them edible.

Sakura shook her head. Once again, it bewildered her why Madoka wanted to keep her talents from Kouji.

_She sings really well_, Sakura admitted to herself. _I could understand her being shy about it if she sucked. She has nothing to hide._

During the song, the bar had grown quiet to listen, now erupted like someone had cranked up the volume. Madoka bowed to her fans, ignoring their pleas for an encore and exited the stage in an inhumanly composed fashion. Sakura jumped up and began to push her way through the crowd, toward the stage entrance/exit. She shoved passed Tarou on her way over, but he was too busy cheering to notice. Sakura eyed him cautiously. Wasn't he going to report this to Kouji? The young boy didn't exactly look like he was going to dash out the door at any moment.

Sakura squeezed herself through the audience and finally collapsed on the stage door. She reached for the handle and as her hand clasped the knob, the door swung open like a rampaging bull, slapping her across the face as though she'd done something offensive.

"Ow!" but she doubted the culprit could hear her cry over the noise of the bar. Sakura clutched her cheek with a chakra-laced palm. The stinging began to subside.

_If this bruises, Naruto and Sasuke will worry._ She reasoned and then wheeled around to give the offender a piece of her mind. She saw Madoka's back retreating into the crowd.

"Ah!" Sakura started. "Madoka!"

The door flew open again, this time catching her squarely in the forehead. Sakura cried out in pain and frustration, squatted down with the aching face cupped in her hands.

"At least think it over, Mado-! Eh?" cried the new attacker. Sakura recognized his voice as the bar's proprietor, Futotta-san. "Is that you, Akane-chan? What's wrong? You okay?"

Sakura chuckled spitefully into her hands.

"I'm good," was her muffled response.

"Well, get up. It's a good thing you're here."

Sakura stumbled drunkenly upward.

"What do you mean?" She muttered and she began to treat her forehead.

"There are a couple of people who've come here to speak with you. I was about to turn them away because I didn't expect you to come back until later."

"Well, you'll have to tell them to come back another time." Sakura dusted her hands on her denim shorts. "I only came back to back to talk to Madoka, so if you'll excuse me, Futotta-san." She began to turn away, but the burly bar owner grasped her arm.

"Madoka can wait." He urged. "She's going to be here all night; she won't leave without the karaoke contest, trust me." He began to drag her through the door way. "Don't worry; these people won't take much of your time." He pulled her down the familiar hall, past the private karaoke booths, until they reached one particular room, the one reserve for VIPs, as if any would ever come to a little karaoke bar in a one-horse town.

Futotta opened the door and pulled Sakura inside. Among the plush couches lining the narrow room, sat two formally dress people, a man and a woman, one sitting on the left, one on the right. The man rested his elbows on the central table while his partner reclined against the red sofa, both looking impatient and bored. Sakura immediately felt awkward. Her battle scarred jean shorts and the mesh top, which nowadays only _dreamed _of being white again, hardly seemed fitting. She suddenly became acutely aware that her hair was sticking up obscenely and tried to flatten it in a paranoid fashion.

The man jumped up as Sakura flattened her hair like a lunatic. He looked somewhat confused.

"No need to be alarmed, Fujitaka-san." Futotta chuckled politely. "This is Akane-san, who I've been telling you about. She happened to come here by chance tonight; are we lucky?"

Sakura eyed Futotta curiously, then looked back at the uptight looking agents.

"Akane-san," Futotta began, his voice syrupy. "This is Fujitaka-san," he motioned to the standing man, "and Matsumoto-san" he motioned to the woman, who hid behind black-shaded glasses. "They're both from the Summer Solstice Festival Planning Commission."

Sakura offered her hand to Fujitaka and he shook it heartily.

"It's nice to meet you." Sakura muttered, bewildered.

"I'll go get that tea I promised." Futotta rubbed the back of his neck and backed out of the doorway.

"Thank you, Futotta-san," Fujitaka called.

Sakura glanced between the door swinging in the wake of her boss and the Festival Commissioners. Nervously, she fidgeted in the awkward silence.

"Um…" She muttered. "What can I do for you both?"

Matsumoto looked up at her., showing no emotion through her dark glasses.

"Akane-san, we're here to ask a favor of you."

Sakura blinked in question.

"I know it is sort of late notice," Fujitaka continued for his partner. "However, this is a matter which cannot be thrown aside."

_Just get to the point,_ Sakura grumbled.

"We want you to sing at the festival's opening ceremony."

"Eh?" Sakura blinked dumbly.

"Our original performer dropped out at last minute." Matsumoto explained, still emotionless, "and according to the locals, you're the best singer around, am I wrong?"

Sakura blushed.

"I doubt it." She replied modestly. "What about Madoka? She's much more talented than me."

"Madoka-san has already refused us; she was our first choice."

"Heh…"

"Of course, we will pay you for your time." Matsumoto replied matter-of-factly.

Sakura bit her lower lip. What to do..? She wished she wasn't technically deceased; this could have been a huge turning point in her career. _Singing in front of that many people will, no doubt draw a lot of attention… and it's not like we came here in disguise. I'm sure Kouji-san is already suspicious because of his fight with Sasuke._ Sakura rubbed her head. If only they had been there _legally._

"Look," Fujitaka said after a few moments of Sakura's torturous contemplation, "We'll give you a day to decide. By this time tomorrow, have your final answer, okay?"

She nodded, which only made her head hurt more.

* * *

Sakura left the bar with so much more on her mind that she'd almost forgotten her original purpose for being there. That is until she squeezed herself out of the establishment and spotted Tarou running off in the opposite direction, carrying two trays of dango. Sakura cocked her head quizzically and followed him. 

He led her down the busy streets, around drunken merchants and traders, under the boisterous crowds of tourists and, finally, into a secluded alley.

"Madoka-taichou!" Tarou called happily and he disappeared around a corner. "Here's your dango."

"Stupid-"

"-ow-"

"I told you not to call me 'taichou' while I'm off duty." Madoka's voice continued. Sakura slowed as she approached the corner that hid her quarry.

"Yes, Madoka-taichou. –ow-!"

"More importantly, it seems that you brought along a friend." Madoka's voice grew tense.

"Huh?"

Sakura rounded the corner casually and stared into the dirty alley. Madoka was sitting like a princess on a dumpster, munching benignly on her dango. Tarou had dropped his in shock and pointed horrified at Sakura.

"KYA!" He screeched. "What are you doing here?"

"That should be my question!" Sakura put her hands on her hips and glared menacingly down at the boy. "I thought you were supposed to be reporting to Kouji!"

"Th-that's none of your business!" Tarou winced. His knees shook slightly and he couldn't meet her eyes.

_The other Raibara members must have told him what I did to them and that bridge, _she sighed to herself.

"Fortunately, I didn't come here to check up on you; I came here to see Madoka."

Tarou turned a little red. Madoka didn't look up from her snack. She chewed for a moment and swallowed.

"What could you possibly want with me?" She muttered, sticking another skewer in her mouth.

"All I want to know is why."

"Why what?"

"Why don't you want Kouji to know where you go all the time?"

Madoka stopped chewing for a moment and through Sakura an intense glare out of the shadow of her hair.

"It's as Tarou said." She hissed, "It's none of your business."

"But you're hurting Kouji-"

"Shut up!"

"And I don't understand-"

"Go away!"

"But you lov-!"

"STOP IT!" Tarou screamed. Sakura and Madoka jumped slightly. The forgotten boy heaved with his proclaimation. He looked Sakura straight in the eye, his own burning with fury. Sakura was taken aback.

"Don't treat Madoka-taichou like that!" He yelled. Sakura blinked.

"Tarou…" Madoka whispered, holding a hand over her chest.

"You have no idea what she's been through! Don't go around talking like you know what's going on!" He pulled his arm back and punched Sakura right in the nose. There was a moment of silence as the thick sound resonated in the air. Tarou heaved with the effort. Sakura blinked from behind his still outstretched arm.

"Is that it?" She muttered. Tarou pulled his hand back in confusion.

"Sorry," Sakura continued. "You're going to have to do better than that if you want to hurt me. I know an old woman who hits harder than that."

Tarou stared at her in pure puzzlement, but didn't have time to unwrap the statement. He found Sakura's finger in his face. With all her strength, she flicked his forehead, sending the boy hurtling backward and smashing into a pile of trash.

"Listen kid," Sakura yelled at him as Tarou flailed around among paper plates and used napkins, "don't think you're justified too. Just because you keep your mouth shut for a person, no matter what the reason, doesn't make you a good friend. Trust me, I know."

Ever since Sasuke had left for Orochimaru, she'd contemplated it. If she had told Naruto about the Cursed Seal sooner, would the outcome have been different? Could she have prevented it all? As she watched Madoka help Tarou out of the trash heap, she wondered… could all this have been avoided too?

Madoka turned toward Sakura.

"You're not such a bad fight as I thought." She sneered.

"Heh, you're probably not bad yourself." Sakura cocked her head and smiled evilly. "I doubt Kouji would be appoint a weakling to the position of 'Taichou'."

"You're not as stupid as I thought either."

"Well, I'm not a boy." Sakura grinned again. "I don't need to beat you up to prove my point."

Madoka eyed her cautiously.

"Then what do you have in mind."

The smile on Sakura's face spread like a weed.

"A contest."

A flicker of interest flashed across Madoka's eyes.

"A contest?"

"Yeah, if I lose, we'll forget about this whole thing, and I'll never again bother you with why you're leaving Kouji out."

"And I lose, what?" Madoka scoffed. "You wanted me to tell you my life story?"

The smile on Sakura's face grew even more evil.

"No, if I win, you'll-" Sakura pointed dramatically at Madoka. "You'll sing at the Summer Solstice Festival opening ceremony."

Madoka blinked for a minute then look at the sky, thinking it over. After a moment she looked back at Sakura, an equally evil smile spread across her face.

"Ok," she grinned, "it's a bet. What sort of contest did you have in mind?"

* * *

"Eeeevvvvvveryoooooooone!" Futotta cried out into the crowd. "It's time for the Weekly Karaoke Contest! Are you reeeeeeeaaaadyyyyy?" 

The crowd screamed over the blare of speakers.

"Alright! Let's get things started!" Futotta cried, and consulted a small piece of paper in his hand. "Our first contestant iiiiiiiiiiiiiiis…"

"Me!" A blur of pink hair zipped past him and snatched the microphone out of his hands.

"Akane-chan?"

Sakura threw her arms up in the air for the crowd. They screamed louder.

"Akane-chan!" Futotta hissed, "You're an employee! You're not allowed to participate, Akane-cha-"

"My name is not Akane-chan!" Sakura cried into the mic. Her voice rippled off her audience.

"Huh?" Futotta gave her a dumbfounded "are-you-stupid?" look.

"Tonight, I'm Haruno Sakura!"

* * *

Author's Note: Gah! Sorry this chapter took so long! It really shouldn't have... it's not like anything happened... anyway, I hope you enjoy it anyway. If everything goes as planned this arc should be over by next chapter, so the pain won't last too long. Also, sorry about all the Sakuraness. Naruto is really being shut-out, huh? We'll have to fix that, now won't we. BUWAHAHAHA!

Next Chapter: The festival finally arrives! And who will be singing! The arc finally comes to an end! (try not to be too happy)


	33. Concerto

**Chapter 33: Concerto**

"Ah! I'm so hungry!" Naruto grumbled, kneading his aching stomach. "Damn that Kouji!" I still don't see why we had to do all his work, that lazy ass."

"He promised us 'prime seating' for the firework show." Sasuke reminded him as the two shuffled into Suiyo-Kame late that evening.

"They're _fireworks!_" Naruto exclaimed. "They go off in the _sky!_ Prime seating is not going to be hard to find. Aaah! Treating us like subordinates…" Naruto's sentence petered off into vengeful muttering.

Sasuke ran his fingers through his hair.

"He really did make us stay late though." He mumbled, looking up at the sky. Even with summer solstice messing everything up, the sky was dark. "These 'prime seats' better be really good or…"

Naruto kicked a beer can. It ricocheted off a day-glow pink sign (Labeled "Open Mic Night") and hit an innocent bystander, who was apparently too drunk to notice or care. Besides this drunkard, the streets were trash-filled but bare.

"Or..?"

"Or I'll kick his ass again, I guess."

"Hell yeah!" Naruto cheered. "That's what I'm talking about! And next time I'll help!"

Sasuke smirked.

"Whatever. Don't get in my way, loser."

"Oh, you want a piece of this, girly man! How about I mess up that pretty face of yours!"

"Just try, shorty."

"Bring it on, Sasuke-hime!"

"You two!" A familiar voiced hissed at them from somewhere above. "Are you two fighting again?"

The two boys looked up and saw Sakura glaring down at them from their apartment.

"He started it!" Naruto pointed an accusing finger at Sasuke.

"Whatever." Sasuke shrugged and put his hands in his pockets, walking into the building.

"Hey, get back here!" Naruto cried as Sasuke disappeared into the Karaoke bar. "I'm not done with you."

"Yes, you are!" Sakura berated. "Now get up here or I'll throw something at you!"

Naruto grumbled and followed Sasuke up, muttering curses like a psycho all the way up. Upon arrival, the two were greeted by two steaming bowls of ramen.

"Eh!" Naruto exclaimed. He dashed up to his bowl, his eyes growing starry, mouth watering. "Sakura-chan, I will never fight with Sasuke again!"

"That's a lie." Sakura teased, flicking him lightly on the forehead. "Don't say things that go against your nindo."

"What's the occasion?" Sasuke sat down in front of his own share as Naruto began to stuff his face. (It was bad ramen, in his opinion, it wasn't Ichiraku, but it was the best ramen he'd eaten since they left.) "I thought you said there wasn't any room in our budget for things like this."

"Well…" Sakura sat down to watch them eat. "Would you believe me if I told you I got an unexpected bonus?"

"It couldn't be from working here tonight." Sasuke gave her a suspicious look. "Does it have something to do with the fact that you didn't really have work tonight?"

Naruto nearly choked on his ramen.

"Sakura-cha-"

"I'm sorry!" Sakura exclaimed, bowing her head and clasping her hands together. "It was something I couldn't tell you in front of Kouji."

Sasuke swallowed a bite.

"Then why don't you tell us now?"

And Sakura did, as best as she could.

"…so Futotta-san let me participate."

"Interesting." Sasuke muttered before downing the last of his ramen. He didn't sound interested in the slightest. "You sure it was a good idea to use your real name?"

"Why not?" Sakura gave him an accusing look. "You did it."

Sasuke threw her a slight glare.

"Besides," Sakura continued, "Everyone there already knows me as Akane. They'll probably assume that 'Sakura' is my penname, not the other way around."

"Well!" Naruto demanded. "Who won? Are you or Madoka going to be singing?"

"Dumbass," Sasuke muttered, "Isn't it obvious?"

Naruto resisted the urge to beat him to a bloody pulp and turned back to Sakura.

"Well?"

Sakura smiled.

"What do you think Naruto?" She laughed, and then she forcibly presented her arm, her middle and index fingers extended in the two-pronged "V" for victory. "Of course, I won!"

-

Several days passed normally, minus the fact that Madoka seemed to refuse Sakura's existence. She denied talking or even looking at the other girl, causing Naruto to chuckle, Sakura to giggle, Kouji to worry and Sasuke to not care. Sakura remained the target of Madoka's hate until one morning when a few visitors entered the karaoke bar. Sakura was taking her morning shift, Naruto was pushing a mop under those hung-over and Sasuke was behind the bar, astounding Futotta with his knowledge of beverages (Though he didn't serve any. The fact that Naruto and Sasuke were working at all merely proves how little else they had to do. Sakura forbade Sasuke from training anyway, due to injury) when a loud familiar entity burst through the door.

"Hey, you maggots!" Mitsurugi called, plowing through the door. "Didja miss me?"

"No." Naruto muttered flatly.

"Mitsurugi-san!" Sakura exclaimed in the middle of her song. A few patrons looked up as she ruined the lyrics, but most didn't care.

"So this is where you work!" He laughed jovially. "Madoka! You shoulda told us earlier!"

Then stern girl stormed in as Mitsurugi held the door open for her. She bolted through like a rhino gone wild, not bothering to thank the unusually courteous Mitsurugi and looking thoroughly tortured and ready to kill. She threw Sakura a dangerous glare and stormed off toward the stage door.

"Oi!" Mitsurugi called after her. "Where are you going?"

"Bathroom." She slammed the door behind her. Mitsurugi shrugged and Naruto stuck his tongue out at the stage door. Sakura opened her mouth the ask Mitsurugi something, but found her answer coming up behind him; Kouji and Akari entered the bar, whispering secretively together.

To Sakura's astonishment, it wasn't lovey-dovey whispering either. Sure, their heads were together, and they looked happy, but it seemed more… business-like. They were completely void of any flirty aura. No infatuation what-so-ever, Sakura thought, and while she was no expert in relationships, they didn't exactly look like they were in one.

_What's going on here?_

Sakura wanted to ask someone else if they noticed, but as she looked around, she found the room devoid of anyone with an emotional sensitivity greater than a clot of dirt. She sighed and decided to let it drop, before she hurt somebody.

"Akari-chan!" She exclaimed, jumping off the stage and running up to her. She embraced the other girl enthusiastically.

"Eh?" Akari blinked at her dumbly as the two broke away. "Do I know you?"

"Akari-chan, it's me." Sakura pulled the pageant pendant out of her shirt. "Haruko."

"Haruko-chan!" Akari cried, embracing her for real this time. "It's been so long! How have you been? Wow, this means you were in on my kidnapping all along? Incredible!"

"You think so?" Sakura smiled modestly, as Sasuke and Naruto came up behind her.

"It's a good thing too!" Mitsurugi exclaimed. "Those damn Konoha idiots. Crappy fighters like that shouldn't even be considered ninjas."

"WHAT!" Naruto shrieked, ready to slaughter.

"That's not true, Mitsurugi-kun!" Akari scolded, "Shikamaru-san, Chouji-san and Ino-chan are wonderful people."

"Heh," Kouji whispered so only Naruto and Sasuke could hear him. "You'll have to forgive Mitsurugi. He's from the Kirika Clan of the Hidden Rock Village. No one in that country takes kindly to Konoha ninjas."

Naruto continued to fume.

"What makes you think that _we_ care about Konoha?" Sasuke asked suspiciously. Kouji looked at him out of the corner of his eye and wicked twinkle reflected in it along with the neon bar lights.

"Hey," Mitsurugi put a hand on his forehead, "Don'tcha think Madoka's taking a long time…"

"Yeah," Akari muttered thoughtfully, "She's in the bathroom, right? You want me to go check on her."

"Actually, I think it's better if I go." Sakura rubbed her cheek with her index finger.

"Really?"

Sakura nodded and ran off to the stage door. She dodged around a few patrons and slid through. She followed the long hall to the bathroom and slipped inside, where she found Madoka craned over a sink.

The platinum blonde girl looked up as though she was hung-over like the rest of the bar and glared at Sakura as she walked in.

"What do _you _want?" She snapped.

"You can't hide in here forever." Sakura reasoned.

"Who said I'm hiding?"

"I do." Sakura hissed, "You always get this way when Akari comes up. I wouldn't expect any less of you now that she finally shows up here."

"Whatever." Madoka scoffed. "You've known me for how long? 11 days? Don't talk like you know anything about how I feel."

"Oh shove it." Sakura leaned back against a sink. "You're not the only who's felt like that, you know."

Madoka snorted.

"So, you're going to tell me something stupid like 'It's not really so bad,' right? Spare me."

"Of course not!" Sakura lectured, "I said I know the same pain. I know very well how much it hurts."

"So what then?" Madoka glared at Sakura out of the corner of her eye.

Sakura laughed evilly.

"It's time for some retaliation." She chuckled and before snatching up Madoka's wrist and dragging her out of the bathroom. The two bolted down the hall.

"Wait a minute. What are you-?"

"I'm going to help you practice," Sakura laughed deviously. "Have they chosen your song yet?"

"Yeah, but it's stupid. Some happy song. It's no use though; I suck at happy songs."

"That's not true," Sakura called as she claimed an empty karaoke room. "Because people like us have a lot to be happy for."

-

June 21, the festival had finally arrived.

"How did we get stuck in this stupid parade?" Naruto grumbled as he threw a crying toddler candy. "and why are wearing Raibara uniforms? We're not a part of this stupid group."

"Just shut up, you idiot." Sasuke tried to look cool while throwing candy into the audience. "Madoka's concert isn't until five. Sakura won't be out until four. We're doing this as a favor to Kouji."

"Well, I'm sick of doing him favors." Naruto glared out into the crowd. "He's not even on this float."

The sun beat down upon them like a wooden mallet, which was made ten times more violent considering they were wearing black. To protect their identities, both were wearing hoodies and the face masks they'd bought on Sea Breeze. But it wouldn't have mattered; the float was piled with fifty other Raibara members. Kouji was three floats ahead of them riding with his father. Naruto pulled off his face mask to get a fresh breath of air, staring wistfully ahead of them. The white cape, adorned with "Lightning" in yellow, billowed like a flag in the wind. It called to Naruto like a distant friend. For an instant, he was tugging on it, except the one he was tugging on said "Fire" in red and the old man was berating him.

"Sasuke," He whispered. Sasuke looked at him while nearly killing a child with a handful of lollipops. "That's going to be me someday." Naruto motioned to the billowing white cape.

"What?" Sasuke cocked a quizzical eyebrow. "I thought you wanted to be _Ho_kage, not _Rai_kage."

"Shut up! That's what I mean!" Naruto sighed staring at the tiny flapping cloak in the distance. "Someday, I'm gonna be like that. Just watch."

Sasuke chuckled.

"I'm watching, but I'm not seeing anything."

Naruto would've smacked Sasuke off the float if Mitsurugi hadn't hit him in the head with a hard candy.

"Get back to work!" He yelled.

"Stupid, sword-wielding giant." Naruto muttered, rubbing his forehead. "One of these days, I'm going to kick his ass."

Sasuke grinned.

The parade ending with a speech from the Raikage, but Naruto and Sasuke only half heard it. The heat had finally gotten to the both of them and after the half hour speech, both boys, along with the other fifty plus members of the Raibara group could be found lying in the Cloud Village River like dead bodies. The swim session ended around 3:30 when Kouji reappeared, looking more tired than the rest of them.

"I _never_ want to be Raikage." He announced and collapsed into the stream. The girls left, using "we have to get ready" as an excuse and the afternoon swim turned into a water fight, which turned into a water war, Naruto and Sasuke, vs. the Raibara members (with Kouji and Mitsurugi acting judge… it was only fair in their opinion.). The score was Home: 0, Visitor: 10 by the time Kouji called them all out to get ready.

"The girls'll complain if we don't look decent." He said.

"Correction." Mitsurugi amended. "_Madoka_ will complain."

Kouji blushed slightly and laughed as they raced each other back to his house.

At 4:50, Naruto and Sasuke stood in the makeshift auditorium, randomly amongst hundred of other guests. Children scurried underfoot waving toys and causing hell for their parents.

"Yeeeah!" Naruto stretched in his borrowed brown _yukata._ "This is a lot better than the black stuff we were wearing."

A vein tweaked in Sasuke's forehead. He felt stupid; the last time he'd worn something like this he'd been, how old? Six? He could even remember.

"You didn't have to bring your sword." He lectured, trying to talk about something that would make him more comfortable, like tormenting Naruto. The blonde felt the sword on his back and smiled.

"I'm only carrying it so I can kick Mitsurugi's ass." He cackled. "That guy has a sword too!"

"You have the worst logic I've ever heard." Sasuke muttered blandly. But in reality, he was carrying shuriken's too. Better safe than sorry.

Naruto watched as another girl came hurling at Sasuke, rebounding off his back and falling pitifully to the ground.

"Iiiiyaaa…" She cried hoarsely. "I'm so sorry."

"No, it's my fault." Sasuke muttered politely, though his patience seemed to be as thin as fishing wire. This had to be Innocent Damsil #13. Naruto almost felt bad for him; it was a horrible way to be beaten up by women.

_These girls are so weak._ Naruto grumbled._ Where's Sakura-chan? Now there's a girl worthy of getting beat up by, because if you live to tell about it, it's worthy of celebration._

"Naruto, Sasuke!" Almost on cue, Sakura's voice echoed from behind them, accompanied by the clitter-clack of wooden shoes. They both turned around, and a few milliseconds passed before the recognized who they were looking at.

Sakura came running awkwardly up to them in petite wooden sandals, the wide sleeves of her semi-elegant pink and green _yukata_ swinging playfully behind her. It made her hair, pulled up gracefully, flare out amongst the black and blonde heads and her eyes shine like two bright moons in the starry radiance of her face. Her cheeks flushed pink from running. She bit a pink glossed lower lip playfully, breathing hard. It was as though the most perfect portrait had sprung to life. Naruto's heart skipped so many beats, he thought it'd stopped altogether. Sasuke had to look away; he looked foolish enough in a _yukata_ without his face being tomato red.

"Sorry, I'm late." She smiled sheepishly. "I hope you two weren't waiting long."

"Not at all; no problem." Naruto babbled, grabbing her hand and leading to where others were standing, or at least he tried to.

"Wait a minute," she whined, "aren't you going to tell me how nice I look?"

"Yes, yes, very nice." Naruto said, still trying to lead her away.

"You're not even looking at me!" She would've said more but Sasuke's hand landed gently on her back and he began to help Naruto move her forward.

"Hey, don't forget Akari-chan!" Sakura cried trying to look back. Sasuke didn't remember Akari, but as he looked back, he found her standing right next to him. She took on look at his bright red face and burst into a fit of giggles; Sasuke could feel his face heat more, if at all possible. No girls bumped into Sasuke after that.

They joined up with Kouji, Mitsurugi, Tarou and a few others.

"I can't believe Madoka is singing." Mitsurugi was saying. "Can she even hold a note? I don't remember her ever being able to do so."

Tarou opened his mouth to retaliate, but Sakura pinched him lightly and put a finger to her lips.

"Let _Madoka_ prove him wrong." She whispered.

Bright lights illuminated the wooden stage as the over-enthusiastic festival representative began his spiel.

"Everyone, welcome to the Hidden Cloud Village Summer Solstice Festival! Before we start the festivities, we are joined tonight by this year's performer, Taiyouko Madoka."

Madoka walked on stage like a proud warrior stepping up to an execution.

"Tonight she will be performing _Suteki da ne_. Everyone, give it up for Madoka-chan!" The lights changed. Madoka flexed her hand on her mike.

"She looks like she's going to barf." Naruto muttered.

"You're sure she can do this?" Kouji asked. "You're sure she's not going to publicly humiliate herself?"

"Would you all just shut up and find out for yourself?" Sakura cried confidently over the beginning music.

Madoka took a deep breath and let it all out. She started off weak, but after the first three lines, of people cheering her on, she really got into it and the true artist emerged from her shell of self-consciousness. Her sound hadn't changed; her voice was like honey for the ears, medicine for the soul, but now it was happy, bouncy, a side long lost in the sea of her constant bitterness. And her happiness was contagious. People began to scream and sing along.

Her voice echoed and resounded through the entire city. People stopped to listen and hum along. And, even in the years to come, few people could disagree that it was the best festival performance in recent memory. By the end, no one wanted it to be, and Madoka dashed off stage, eyes streaming, away from the demand for an encore.

Sakura looked around at her neighbors. Naruto's eyes sparkled. Sasuke's were as big as saucers. Kouji and Mitsurugi seemed rather dumbfounded; both of their mouth's were hanging open slightly and Mitsurugi looked like he'd been hit in the face with a brick. Behind them, Akari was crying.

Sakura couldn't hold it in. She burst out laughing, point and muttering. Passersby thought she had gone insane, but she'd never had it more together. Madoka: 1, Everyone else: 0.

"C'mon." Sakura grabbed Kouji's hand and dragged him to the side door. Madoka finally slipped through the throngs of people asking for autographs with a skillful use of Henge no Jutsu, and snuck over to them.

"Aww, geez" Madoka cried, "I thought I'd _never_ get out of that."

Sakura pulled Kouji in front of her and he stood there awkwardly, red, and avoiding eye contact. Madoka crossed her arms defensively across her chest, blushing slightly.

"Well, aren't you going to say anything?" She snapped.

"Ano…" Kouji turned redder and poked his fingers Hinata-style. "Y-You should've told me you were that talented." He whispered.

"I don't have to you everything..."

"Y-you were really good." He stuttered.

Madoka made an attempt to look him in the face, but he look away embarrassed.

"Thank you, Kou-kun." She whispered, smiling brightly.

"Eh!" Kouji's head popped up like a gopher's.

"What?" Mitsurugi also snapped to attention. "Did she..?"

"I bet I can win more toys than the two of you combine!" Madoka pointed at them accusingly. Both Mitsurugi and Kouji shook off their shock.

"Oh, whatever!"

"Bring it on, stupid!"

The three of them dashed off towards the row of booths.

"You're not going with them Akari?" Sakura asked.

Akari wiped her eyes again.

"No, I think its better that I don't; it been a long time since they've had fun, just the three of them." She looked wistfully off into the distance. "He's never looks at me like that…"

-

"Ta-Da!" Kouji spread his arms out wide, a broad grin pulling at his cheeks. "Welcome to the Kou-Ma-Mitsu Secret Base, our prime seats for tonight's fireworks spectacular!"

They stood on top of a small, square grass clearing. On two sides parallel to each other were dark, looming trees, facing the group's front and back. To their right was a traditional little house, complete with papers doors and a wooden deck. On their left, stood a steep cliff, that if you were so unfortunate as to fall down it, you'd slide down the faces of the Raikage monument and land splat in Kouji's backyard in the Hidden Cloud Village.

"What's so secret about this place?" Naruto wheezed with the effort of the climb. The little house was filled with noise. At least twelve other people were meandering around inside it. "Seems like everyone knows about it."

"Well, it _used_ to be secret." Kouji muttered irritably, before stomping up to the house.

"Kouji, Madoka and I built this place when we were still academy students." Mitsurugi laughed as the rest of them followed Kouji up to the house. "That was way before the Raibara Group, as you can imagine."

"Eh!" Sakura exclaimed, nearly tripping in her sandals. "You three built _that!"_ She pointed enthusiastically at the quaint, but complex and well-made looking cottage. "When you were young?"

"Heh.." Mitsurugi rubbed the back of his head. "Well, it started out as a blanket and a couple of sticks…"

"This cottage was built to house the Raibara Group's Headquarters." Madoka cut in.

"Eh!" Naruto cried. "This place was your HQ? Then why'd you move to that icky sewer?"

"Having the base up here is too inconvenient." Madoka readjusted her glasses. "It's an extra hike to get up here. The sewer is much more sensible."

They reached the cabin, slipped off their shoes, and stepped inside. The single-room cottage was wall-to-wall tatami mats with a small table in the corner bearing treats and goodies. The room was lit by an economy-sized rod with a dangling switch. Other members of the gang had already begun trading the toys they'd won and bickering over the exchange rate. There was a brief moment of silence as Kouji entered the room, but the din soon returned.

"It's quite cute." Sakura smiled pleasantly. "You've been here before, Akari-chan?"

"Yes," Akari nodded. "We come up here every year."

Naruto was bounding off to the snack table when suddenly someone grabbed the hilt of the sword on his back.

"Gak!" Naruto squealed. "Hey, Leggo!"

"Wait! I want to see it!" Mitsurugi said from behind him, yanking the sword off Naruto and holding it up to the light.

"Hey!" Naruto cried, clawing for his sword. "That's mine! Give it back!"

"I said I want to see it." Mitsurugi held the sword out of Naruto's immediate reach. "Don't get your panties in a bunch. I don't want it; I've got my own." He motioned to a large sword on his back. "I just want to look at it."

Mitsurugi held it up again, ignoring Naruto's disgruntled demeanor. The large boy gently ran in fingers over the decorative sheath like an antique collector. He pulled the blade out far enough to read the "Kyuubi" inscribed upon it, and shut it.

"I don't know how you got this," Mitsurugi sighed in awe, "but you are one lucky bastard."

"Eh?" Naruto blinked stupidly.

Mitsurugi tossed the sword back and unsheathed his own weapon.

"Now show me what you can do with it." He sneered.

Naruto grinned and pulled his own sword out.

"Bring it on."

A space cleared itself in the middle of the room. The miscellaneous Raibara members, Akari and Sakura sat down to watch.

"Don't do anything stupid!" Sakura called as the two boys sized each other up.

"Idiots." Madoka muttered and busied herself straightening the snack table and avoiding requests for another song. Sasuke shoved his hands in his pockets and stepped out into the hot summer night. A clash of steel echoed behind him as he slipped his shoes on and stepped on to the mattress-like grass. He took five steps from the cottage and the night engulfed him. The distant ring of metal and cheers were not nearly as loud as the crickets now, singing their own private language to each other. Night had almost completely taken over. To Sasuke's right a pallid shade of sky drained into the mountains, slowly, as if every minute was endless. Sasuke crossed the front yard, fireflies leapt into the air as he nearly crushed them and floated away like pollen in the wind. As he reached the cliff's edge, he stared out over the Hidden Cloud Village, the myriad of lights winking up at him, and sat peaceably on a boulder. Far below, little festival-goers scurried around, causing the illuminations on the ground to flicker in their many shadows, making it a perfect reflection of the stars above. It reminded Sasuke of being atop the Hokage monument, like he did with his brother so many years ago. There were no views like this in the Sound Village; it's always the little things you take for granted.

Sasuke pulled a shuriken out of his pocket and turned it over in his hands, thinking about the new jutsu he'd acquired. Curiously, he dropped it to the ground and folded his hands together in seals.

"Seidenki Gyuujiru no Jutsu." He focused on the fallen shuriken. Yellow streaks zigzagged across it and it began to hover, stuttering in the air. Sasuke glared at it. The shiny star stopped in the air and fell retardedly to the ground. Sasuke nearly did the same.

_What's wrong? It was so easy to do when I was fighting Kouji…_

"They're amazing, those eyes of yours."

Sasuke looked up to see Kouji moving toward him from a place propped against a nearby tree.

"It took me five years to get as far as you have." Kouji picked up the shuriken. "Truly, they are incredible. Enough to make a person jealous, those Sharingan eyes." He turned the shuriken over in his hands and grinned at Sasuke in a "thought-you-could-fool-me-huh?" kind of way.

"So you know…" Sasuke fidgeted with his hands (though not out of nervousness) and looked out over the sparkling city.

"Yeah," Kouji did the same, still fiddling with the shuriken. "It wasn't hard. That's a unique bloodline you have there. I looked it up after we fought. Strange though, only one living person is supposed the have those eyes, and you are definitely not him. There's no way in hell I could have beaten that man."

Sasuke smirked in slightly in agreement.

"Though, during my search, I _did_ run across something interesting." Kouji went on. "Apparently, a boy with your bloodline, and two of other teammates, went and got themselves blown up in an attempt to destroy the leader of Sound Country." He gave Sasuke a sly look. "So what did you do? Fake your own death, Uchiha Sasuke?"

"Something like that." Sasuke scoffed, smirking at hearing his name said by someone other than Naruto or Sakura.

"Don't worry, I won't turn you in." Kouji began to juggle the shuriken. "I don't think you're even here under your country's jurisdiction; it's not like you pose a threat. In fact, I should be thanking you. Now that the Sound Village has fallen, trade routes have opened up with Earth Country again."

"I know," Sasuke stood up, "I worked in a trader's bar on Sorano." He turned to Kouji. "After tonight, my friends and I will be leaving this place. We've obviously been here too long if idiots like you are figuring out our identities."

"Heh, you want to fight again?" Kouji sneered. He threw the shuriken at Sasuke. Sasuke caught it centimeters from his forehead. Kouji laughed and shoved out his hand.

"If we should meet again, I want a rematch." He chuckled. "Next time, I'll beat you for sure."

"Don't be so sure." Sasuke grasped his hand and shook it. "I won't go easy on you, you know."

"I guess that makes us rivals then." Kouji laughed.

"Heh." Sasuke turned to look for a moment at the glimmering city.

"Sorry," he said. "I've already got a rival." Sasuke turned to look Kouji straight in the eye. "And he's a lot stronger than you."

A loud crashing sound erupted from the hut. Sasuke looked at it, a bright beacon in a field of darkness. They could see the dancing silhouettes of Naruto, abandoning his sword and pummeling Mitsurugi with Kage Bunshin.

"That guy…?" Kouji wondered. "Is he really that strong?"

"You have no idea."

A swift, warm breeze blew between them, tousling their hair.

A loud screech echoed from the city below.

"Ah!" Kouji exclaimed. "That signals the beginning of the fireworks."

"Kouji!" The distant voice of Akari reverberated from the house. "What that the flare?"

"Yeah!" He called back "Get everyone out here! It's gonna start."

With that, the small figure turned and yelled something into the cabin. Suddenly, everyone came pouring out like it was free T-shirt day.

"Geez!" Sakura stomped down the yard, holding a flailing Naruto in a headlock. "Can't you go anywhere without making a mess!"

"Oi, Sasuke!" Naruto called as they approached. Sakura dropped her captive and he quickly moved away from her immediate reach. "So this is where you've been! Stupid! You missed my cool battle! I totally kicked Mitsurugi's ass!"

"Yeah, right!" Mitsurugi came up behind them. "That's what you think, shrimp."

Naruto opened his mouth to retaliate, but found it impossible, as Sakura was pulling his cheeks.

"'I totally kicked Mitsurugi's ass'? What's wrong with you?" She berated. "You say that like it's a good thing!"

"But Sakura-chan, it _is_ a good thing. –ow!-"

"Haha!" Mitsurugi jeered. "What nooOOW?"

"That's enough of you too." Madoka snapped, pulling his ear toward her.

Their bickering was interrupted by a BOOM! And a flash of multicolored light. Brilliant blossoms of Technicolor red, yellow, blue and green splashed themselves across the void sky. They danced over the white path and pale houses of the Hidden Cloud Village and the river encircling it. For each moment a firework exploded, all else was forgotten; all happiness, all sadness, all pain, all angst, all desire, all floated away into the smoke residue. The trio watched among their comrades as the brilliant lights lived and died in the sky.

-

Akari watched the three disappear with Mitsurugi like a mother proudly watching her child leave for school.

_I'm glad everything worked out,_ She thought merrily, letting her tea warm her palms. She sighed. _It's nice to meet people like them._

She, Madoka, and Kouji sat peacefully in the courtyard, serene thoughts wafting through their minds like the breeze.

_I wish there could be more days like this…_Akari took another sip of tea. _This is really good tea, _she thought in mild surprise. She faced Madoka to compliment the girl's tea brewing skills when suddenly her eyes grew wide and she sprayed Madoka with tea in shocked revelation.

"Akari!" Kouji jumped up as the girl huddled over coughing. Madoka blinked irritably as the warm tea dribbled off her chin, pulled off her fogged glasses and began to clean them on her black skirt.

"Kouji!" Akari cried, jumping up and seizing the boy by the arm. Kouji gave her a worried look and opened his mouth to speak but she beat him to it.

"Kouji! This is terrible!"

"Indeed." Madoka muttered coldly as she placed her glasses on her dripping face.

"Ah!" Akari cried, realizing what she had done. "Oh, Madoka! I'm so sorry! Let me get you a towel."

Akari made for to dash back into the house then yelped and turned back to the southward door.

"But I have to-" She turned back to the house, then to the door, then to the house again. Pretty soon she was running hysterically around in a circle. Madoka put an exasperated hand to her wet forehead. Kouji grabbed Akari by the shoulders and spun her to face him.

"Akari!" he cried. "Calm down! Forget about Madoka-"

"Gee, thanks." Madoka muttered, sipping her tea. Kouji threw her a dirty look before turning back to Akari.

"What's wrong, Akari?" He said sternly.

"I just remembered." She panted frantically. "Kimaru, Aoi, Akane, there is something important I have to tell them."

There was a tense moment where nothing moved except Kouji's chest, which rose and fell heavily. Madoka looked up from her tea.

"Tell them what, Akari?" Kouji muttered.

"Well, a couple weeks after they left Biscuit Island-"

"Yeah?"

"-my father and I were in our new house-"

"Yeah?"

"-and we were visited by this strange man."

"What!"

"He said he was looking for them, Kouji!" Akari cried, her eyes desperate. "He said he was looking for Kimaru, Aoi and Akane. I told him I'd tell them if I saw them again… that he was looking…"

Kouji let go of Akari and furrowed his eyebrows.

"Strange…" He muttered. "If he was after them, he wouldn't have wanted you to tell them…"

"I don't think it was anything like that." Akari gazed absentmindedly out the southward gate. "He said he just wanted to question them about the incident on Sea Breeze… but…"

"But..?" Kouji peered intently at her.

"He was an excellent ninja." Akari continued. "He hid his emotions so well. In fact, you couldn't see much of him anyway. Most of his face was covered with a mask, and his hitai-ate covered most of the rest. All he really showed us was one eye pretty much, and, even though the entire time he talked to us he was smiling, I could feel some immense sorrow in that eye, sorrow and determination. In the end, that's what led me to promise him… Oh, did I mention he had a really cute dog?"

Kouji rapped his knuckles playfully against her forehead and laughed.

"Don't worry about telling those three about him." Madoka said, getting up to get her own towel. Akari looked at her in question. Kouji nodded in agreement and Akari's gaze was transferred to him.

"I'm sure, if what you saw in his eye is correct." Kouji smiled, the summer breeze tossing his brown hair, "I'm sure they'll meet up. Eventually."

* * *

Author End-of-Arc Notes: GYAAHH! It's over! It's finally over! Oh the pain! Someone get me an ice pack! I hope you all enjoy the story thus far. As of yet, this may be the last time we see these characters, unless of course, you want to see them again, which is always a possiblity. Anyway, time for main rantage! The main point of this arc was to give Sasuke a new technique, so you can bet he'll use it. I decided to add some drama in it to spice the story up; who can't go without a little drama eh? As you can imagine, there's a lot going on behind the scenes. The Kou-Ma-Mitsu relationship is actually a lot more complicated, but I didn't want to waste time on it. It's unrealistic for them to randomly talk about it. Also, if you are questioning the relationship between Kouji and Akari, GOOD! I want it that way. There's more to that story too, but, again, I'm not going into it.

About "_Suteki Da Ne"_: Before anyone asks, this is NOT the song from FFX, nor any other song for that matter. It means "Isn't it Wonderful?" which I thought was a great title. The song is suppose to be upbeat and popish, with happy lyrics, but I'm not about to write a song, especially not in Japanese. I couldn't write lyrics to save my life, let alone in another language.

About the Arc: This was one of the few arcs I've had in my head for a long time, and because of that it has changed a lot. A couple of things that were going to happen but didn't: Akari was going to die, the town was going to be attacked by a monster, Kouji was going to fight his father, Naruto&Co were going to disband the Raibara etc. The mind is a crazy place ain't it?

About Names: As I've mentioned before, I choose names, usually for a reason. Madoka is named after a singer from Full Moon wo Sagashite (She was second to Mitsuki, but was still a good singer, so I thought it fit well). Mitsurugi was named after the cool samurai dude from Soul Caliber (and he uses a sword too! I'm so smurt ). Tarou was named after... no one XD. He's a random basic character, so he has a random basic name. (Thinking back, I should've named him Hanatarou... I love Bleach..) and Kouji was named well...because it sounds cool? I named Kouji before I even thought about naming people for a reason. :)

Oki... There's a lot more I didn't cover... but it's not really important and who cares? I'll probably post the whole, Kou-Ma-Mitsu story on my livejournal anyway. If you have any questions, feel free to post them or send them to me.

Next Chapter: The Team reaches Zosho! What is it that Kikyou wanted Sakura to find?


	34. Inheritance

**Chapter 34: Inheritance**

Naruto sniffed the air like a man on a mission, but recoiled in disgust at the myriad of scents that attacked him.

"Bleh." He winced. Hot, that's what it smelled like, hot, like hot things baking under a hot sun while a million hot people stamped all over the decaying hotness of it all.

"Hot…" Naruto muttered, and might have said more if a hand hadn't yanked the back of his collar and dragged him into an alley, which reeked of garbage but wasn't as hot.

"Idiot, don't get lost." Sakura whispered, wheezing under the intense heat. Her concerns were well founded. Zosho was just the sort of place where one could get lost and never be found again. Everywhere there were people, a hundred in every square foot. They crammed the streets like ants on a forgotten pastry. You could easily be swept away.

Zosho itself was pretty rustic. From their mere half a day there, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura had looked around a bit and could almost feel how old the city was. It felt like the city had been there since the birth of time. Tall, sandy multistory building rose on all sides, creating a circular maze leading to a large, looming dome in the distance. This, of course, was their initial destination, the Grand Archive, library of history and ninjutsu. They had all hoped it would be that simple.

Naruto pulled the Kirika Clan bandana off his sword and tied it around his head to stop the sweat from dripping into his eyes. Mitsurugi had given it him with the simple message that "If you ever find yourself in Earth Country, show that to any member of my clan. Maybe they can teach you some _real_ katana skills." It was Mitsurugi who had seen them off from Lightning Country. At Kouji's request, he'd guided them to them port and arranged for an unregistered charter to Zosho for them. And when Sakura voiced her concern about their identities, ("Zosho is a haven for people from every country, particularly Fire Country because it's so close." She had said. "We need disguises.") he helped them discretely buy wigs.

_I guess he's not so bad,_ Naruto thought, adjusting his new hair under the bandana. _Still, I can't wait to see him again so I can kick his ass._

In terms of their new head gear, Naruto had gotten lucky. His new doo was brown, short and spiky, and pulled back like it was gelled with something expensive. Sakura had what Mitsurugi and Naruto called "Madoka hair" (and had a great laugh about) and, though not as long, it was the same platinum blonde as the other girl's. She'd tied the shoulder-length wig back in a short ponytail to fight the heat. Sasuke was worst off, getting a long black thing. It soaked up the heat really well, but despite this, he refused to pull it back like Sakura. It made him look like his brother; he'd never be able to look at his reflection without throwing something at it. So he kept it down, and, sitting in the dirty shade of the alley, looked as though he was going to pass out.

"We probably need new clothes too." Sakura sighed as she collapsed against the alley wall. "But first things first, we need to find a hotel and get up to that library."

"So we can get this thing that Kikyou person wants you to have, right?" Naruto said shouldering his backpack.

"No," Sakura replied, dragging a staggering Sasuke to his feet. "It's probably really cool in there. Let's go!"

She grabbed Naruto's hand and half dragged the two of them into the crowded street.

-

After searching for hours, they found a nice hotel near the beach, a little hole-in-the-wall smashed between a restaurant and a post office. It was so well hidden Naruto swore it had learned genjutsu. They would not have found had Sakura not thrown a local a sob story and a puppy dog pout.

The room was about the size of a bathroom, the bathroom was about the size of a bread box. The square single only had a double bed in the center and about a foot and a half of space on either side. On the right was a door, on the left was a window and straight ahead was a dirty mirror that looked as though it had been bought at a garage sale.

"It's not that bad…" Sakura laughed sheepishly, tripping over Naruto's backpack. There wasn't enough space to move around it.

Sasuke snorted pessimistically and crossed his arms over his chest. Naruto tried to counteract Sasuke's attitude, but all he could think of were the sleeping arrangements.

_There's one bed… no room in here to put down a sleeping bag._ He looked over at Sakura, who was busy consulting the window and blushed a deep red. His face got so hot he might have died of heat stroke had Sakura not opened the window just then. A cool evening breeze swept through the room and saved Naruto from himself. He anxiously moved closer to the window.

_Stupid!_ He cursed himself. _Don't think about it! Miso ramen! Miso ramen!_

Sakura collapsed on the bed.

"I'm too tired to go up to the library today." She whined. "It's too hot."

Naruto looked over at Sasuke and saw the other to be equally tortured.

"Ne, Sakua?" Sasuke muttered, his voice cracking slightly. "Maybe we should get something to eat."

"Hmmmm…" Sakura sat up. "Yeah, I'm pretty hungry… What do you guys feel like eating?"

"Miso ramen." Naruto replied hoarsely.

Sakura glared at him and slapped him on the head.

"Idiot!" She reprimanded. "Who'd eat something that hot in this weather? Do you want heat stroke?" She hit him again as if to rattle so sense into his brain, but it seemed to have an opposite effect. Naruto, holding his spinning head, stumbled dizzily out the window.

"Naruto!" Sakura cried rushing to the ledge,

"We're on the first floor." Sasuke pointed out, annoyed. Sakura tossed him a glare, before peering down at Naruto. He'd ostriched himself in the white beach sand and was struggling to free his head.

"Don't worry, Naruto, I'm coming." Sakura jumped down. "C'mere and help, Sasuke!"

"Why?" He leapt down to join them anyway.

"My strength doesn't work when I'm tired and hungry! You know that." She glared at him. Sasuke shrugged and grabbed Naruto's left shoulder. Sakura grasped the other. Naruto mumbled something, but was muffled by sand.

"1…" Sakura counted. "2… 3!"

Sakura heaved. Sasuke heaved. Naruto's head popped out easier than a cork from a wine bottle and both his friends had heaved too hard. The three went tumbling backward into the water.

SPLASH!

The next thing Sakura knew her butt was submerged in water and sand and she was pilling wet, salty hair out of her eyes. A wave slammed against her back and messed up her hair again.

"Naruto…" she growled under her sheet of hair. "You idiot!"

She smack water in his direction; he dodged by lying flat his back the water and the mini wave hit Sasuke instead.

"Hey!" He cried and retaliated with his own splash, but hitting Naruto as he reemerged.

"You bastard!" Naruto yelled and stood up, kicking and thrashing water in Sasuke direction.

"Naruto, don't take it out on Sasuke!" Sakura berated, splashing his back.

And thus, a fierce battle of splashes ensued. Each warrior fought relentlessly but soon, as the sun hid its face behind a curtain of sea, their anger and threats turned into laughter. As the sky grew dark, the laughter became the only way to make each other out from the sea. The back door of the restaurant next door interrupted their fun as a yellow streak of artificial light drew itself across their play area.

"Hey, you kids!" A man in a dirty apron called out. "We have some leftovers food no one's gonna eat. You want some?"

The three exchanged looks through the water dripping in their eyes.

"Sure!" They called in unison.

By a fire lit by Sasuke, the trio partook in the best food they'd eaten since leaving Konoha, savory meats, delectable pastas, slightly cold, but not to anyone's loss.

That night Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura collapsed into a wet happy pile on their bed and fell asleep without another thought.

-

Naruto squinted at the tall, brilliant white steps and blanched. The enormous staircase of the library dazzled him like a million unnaturally white teeth, speckled with a hundred tourists, walking up and down them. The circular building rose above them like the Hokage monument, eclipsing the hot summer sun. The doors stood wide open, people going in and out like bees in a hive.

"Hmmm…" Naruto rubbed his chin "This fortress will be hard to penetrate with so many people."

"Stupid." Sasuke grumbled and began his way up the steps.

"What!"

"Naruto, you retard." Sakura berated, continuing up the stairs with Sasuke. "We don't have to penetrate anything. It's a public library."

Naruto hurried after them.

"Then why does nothing get stolen?"

"The security is probably on the inside." Sasuke said, quickening his pace to get out of the sun. "You need a key to get to the high-level jutsu. You still have it, Sakura?"

Sakura put her hand over her pocket and felt the scroll.

"You bet." She confirmed.

"Alright!" Naruto exclaimed, jumping stairs to climb ahead of them. "Let's go!"

He stepped confidently onto the landing, shaded by the enormous overhang and strutted through the 20-foot archway.

As soon as they entered, the temperature dropped at least 12 degrees. Naruto yelped and hugged his shoulders. Sakura tried to shake off his goose bumps and Sasuke seemed to snap out of the daze he'd been in. But the task before them gave them even more shivers; they stared blankly at the twelve staircases going in all directions.

"Er…" Naruto muttered.

At the hub of the circular entrance hall was a very complex looking map. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura squeezed their way through the throngs of people to ogle at it. The library was a complete sphere, it showed, the other half being underground. The entire thing was sectioned off into eight slices, like an orange. Five slices were each dedicated o their own of the five ninja countries, two were for other villages, and the last section, the one they had entered into, was the complete Bingo Book, a compilation of all the top ninjas of all countries, past and present. What they were looking for seemed to be at the very bottom of the Fire slice.

"Let's just grab this thing and leave." Naruto grumbled. He had a bad history with libraries.

Sakura gave him and irked stare and began to walk off. She and Naruto had taken five steps out of the crowd when they realized they were missing someone.

"Oi!" Naruto wheeled around. "Sasuke! What are you doing, you bastard?"

Sasuke continued to stare intently at the floor plan.

"C'mon!" Naruto called again. "I wanna get out of here!"

Sasuke didn't respond. Naruto and Sakura doubled back and peered over his shoulder. His face was angled at the fourth level of the Fire slice, a records section labeled "Bloodline Clans."

"Ah." Naruto sighed in understanding. Sasuke jumped as though someone had poked him with a stick. He took notice of his teammates eavesdropping and grumbled.

"Ne, Sasuke," Sakura piped up. "Maybe they have information on how to beat your brother's Mangekyou Sharingan."

Sasuke turned on his heel and bee-lined out of the crowd.

Naruto and Sakura exchanged looks.

"They don't." Sasuke replied coldly, making his way toward the Fire-bound stairs.

"Sasuke," Sakura lectured. "You don't know-"

"I do." He replied. "And they don't." He stepped hard down onto the first stair. Naruto and Sakura exchanged looks again, shrugged and dashed after their comrade.

Sasuke lurched down the stairs, deep in thought. It wasn't that he didn't want to look, but the action would be fruitless.

_Not even the Uchiha secret base has solid information on the Mangekyou. How could this place have such unattainable knowledge?_

During his probation, while Kakashi, Naruto and Sakura were out questing, Sasuke had little to do. With his Sharingan and 75 percent of his chakra blocked, training was mundane and pointless. He did what little he could do, but wouldn't get any stronger. So, while he wasn't doing basic training or community service, he'd taken an active role researching Itachi's abilities. He scouted through piles of regular Sharingan information and the rare few Mangekyou testimonies, but all led to the same conclusion: The Kaleidoscope Mirror-Wheel Eye was unbeatable, avoid it or suffer under it.

Sasuke guessed some part of Naruto was contagious, because now he was more determined then ever. Only now he'd have to get all his information from the source.

_Bring it on, Itachi-niichan. I'm waiting._

They were descending their ninth flight of stairs when Sasuke realized the echo of footsteps behind him had stopped. He looked up to see Sakura looking up at Naruto, whose attention had been caught by something on the landing above.

"Oi, Naruto!" Sakura called. "What are you doing? We're almost there!"

"Um… Sakura-chan, go on without me." Naruto pleaded. "There's something I wanna check out."

"Oh, okay." Sakura sighed. "But stay in this section and don't wander off, or we may never find you again."

"Hai!" Naruto called as he dashed off.

Sakura looked annoyed as she stepped down toward Sasuke, but then smiled and chuckled.

"What floor was that?" Sasuke asked.

"History of Hokages." Sakura laughed. "C'mon, let's get this over with or we may never drag him out of here."

They continued on into the depths of the basement until they passed the last floor of basic jutsu information and moved down into the vaults. Sakura shivered against the dank cold of the place. The entire floor was covered in back iron sheets with lockers lined up on either side, except these were less like Ninja Academy lockers and more like prison cells. Each consisted of a five-foot wide, three-foot deep arch into the wall, as though someone had dug it out with a spoon. The curved wall, the safety deposit box's door, as well as the floor before it, had a number on it. On the hemisphere foyer was a small cylindrical hole and a large seal pattern circulating around it. Sakura guessed it was for the key-scroll.

The only lighting the dungeon offered were pathetic little gas lamps, flickering between each of the indented vaults. The entire place reminded Sakura of a torture chamber or a prison. She moved closer to Sasuke's back, goose bumps tickling her arms, as they made their way deeper into the cavern.

Row after row of ancient storage cells passed them by, each identical except for the number which was gradually getting smaller. Sakura pulled the key-scroll out of her pocket and checked it.

_We need to find Vault 26…_

At last, the path came to a halt at a large cul-de-sac. This circular opening had six indented doors spaced around its circumference, like part of an ambiguous dream. They had entered through one door, opposite of which was another hall leading out and away from the circular room and void of any measly light the corridor behind them had to offer. The four other doors, two on each side, were like the pervious scroll "lockers", but a hundred times more elaborate. The ornate seal patterns danced their way from the hole at the base and wound their way around a number. The second door on the left was 26.

Sasuke and Sakura exchanged looks and stepped into the circle. Sasuke glanced around suspiciously as Sakura approached the door. She pulled the black scroll out of her pocket and glared at the hole in the floor. After exchanging another look with Sasuke for reassurance, she dropped the scroll into the hole.

The door before them came alive. The solid iron barrier retreated into the corners in its frame like a mass of ants. The little scroll popped up out of the ground like toast from a toaster and Sasuke caught it before the two cautiously tiptoed into the space before them.

There was nothing there. Absolutely nothing. Not even the tiniest scroll.

The room was almost the exact same as the one they'd just left except this one was made of stone and minus six doors, though there was an inscription pattern directly ahead of them that sort of looked like a door. The room was lit by virtually nothing, although you could barely make out the thousands on inscriptions carved all over the room.

"This is it?" Sakura put her hands on her hips and cocked her head to the side. "I don't get it."

Sasuke stepped gingerly toward the center and crouched down to look at it. It seemed all the inscriptions were circulating around this one spot.

"Hey," he called. Sakura tore herself away from the seal-esque writing and crouched beside him. Sasuke pointed to the floor. In the middle of the sprawling scripture was another hole, but this one was tiny. Sakura tried to fit her pinky in it, but no avail. The geometric shape didn't match anything she could find on her.

"You think we have to fill it with blood?" Sasuke muttered grimly.

"Wait a minute." The shape looked familiar. It was like a prism. Sakura blew into it and it revealed a high sound.

"It's only about an inch deep."

An inch deep prism..? Satori Kikyou said she had everything she needed. She hadn't lied, had she? Maybe they needed to go back to Sorano. No, no, the boys wouldn't want to do that, especially not Naruto. Not after what he went through after his necklace had been stolen…

Sakura gasped. She grabbed Sasuke's collar and cried into his ashen, bewildered face.

"We need to find Naruto… _now!_"

-

Naruto left a pile of "How-To" Hokage books, deeming them trash. After failing all their tests and personality charts, he had concluded that whoever had written them had never been a Hokage nor had any friends. He perused the Hokage books until he came across a fascinating area called "Hokages". Five aisles pivoted outward, each marked with a name and then a picture, just incase you forgot who the "Shodaime", or whoever, was. Naruto ran his fingers over the piles of historical accounts and testimonies given about the first Hokage. He stood in awe as he looked up, the accomplishments of one man looming over him. Suddenly, Naruto felt very small. Not half this could be said about himself, in his opinion. He scampered down to the Hokage hub and shook it off.

_One day they'll have an aisle like that for me, _he grinned, _well, not an aisle. An entire library!_ He chuckled to himself, but stopped abruptly. His eyes landed on the aisle marked with Yondaime's face: "The Life and Accomplishments of the Fourth Hokage."

In school, he'd learned about Hokages 1-3 "They were the essential building blocks of our village." Iruka-sensei said, but nothing had been taught about Yondaime. When Naruto was younger, Iruka had told him that they never learned about the Fourth because the memory was still too painful. Many parents of his classmates had been friends with the Fourth; many grandparents could remember him as a child. It had only occurred to Naruto recently that it was for his own sake; it might provoke questions among his peers and might remind the elders of how he died, something they blamed Naruto for.

So the most they were not was that Yondaime had fought the Giant Nine-Tailed Fox Demon and saved the village.

But Yondaime had always fascinated Naruto. It was he who had sealed the demon in him and changed the course of his life. Naruto supposed he should hate Yondaime for it. If the man hadn't chosen _him_, so much would be different. He wouldn't have Akatsuki hunting him down; he wouldn't have to hear whispers wherever he went. He could've had a happy childhood with lots of friends and maybe even parents. In a sick way, Yondaime had taken this all away from Naruto, yet he couldn't bring himself to be mad. Somehow, deep inside him, he understood.

Though, Naruto had wondered about it many times._ Why did he choose me?_ And the answers might really be at his fingertips. He ran them over the smooth book covers and scrolls, skimming the titles: _Birth and Childhood: A Concise History, Chronicles of Yondaime as a Genin, Chronicles of Yondaime as a Chuunin, Written Testimonies of Jiraiya, The Wartime Commander, _then something caught Naruto's eye.

Near the bottom, toward the end was a large book. He immediately pulled it from the shelf and read the cover:

_Yondaime and the Nine-Tailed Fox-Demon: A Complete History_

Naruto immediately opened it and was about to begin when the Table of Contents caught his eye. He scanned the chapter listings:

The Resurrection…….. 550

A Final Clash………….586

Naruto…………………634

Naruto choked. He was the last chapter! His heart twanged like a rubber band. Hastily, he turned to page 634 and began to…

"Naruto!"

Naruto's head shot up. The quick thud of footsteps echoed around him.

"Eh?"

"Over here!" said a voice and Sasuke and Sakura shot around the corner at him.

"Eh!" Naruto dropped his book as Sakura grabbed his arm and began to drag him away.

"Sasuke? Sakura-chan? What's going on!" He gasped as he tried to keep his balance.

"We need you Sakura snapped. "C'mon! Hurry up!" And without further ado, they dragged him out of the room and down several flights of stairs.

-

"Hey!" Naruto finally wrenched his arm back. "What's the big idea!" He looked around at the dark iron walls of the six-door circle. He rubbed his shoulder and grimaced.

"Just a second." Sakura called as she approached Door 26. She pulled the scroll out of her pocket and pushed it into the hole. The door receded into its framework and the scroll popped up again.

Naruto blinked, aghast, but didn't have time to contemplate it. Half a second later, he was dragged through. He stared around at the empty, cold stone chamber.

"You need me for this…?" He cocked his head to the side and grimaced. Sakura ignored his skepticism, dashed to the center of the room and held her hand out to him.

"Eh?" Naruto cocked his head to the other side.

"Your necklace." Sakura demanded "I need your necklace."

"What? Why?" Naruto clenched the front of his shirt.

Sakura sighed in exasperation.

"Because it's the second key to the vault. It'll fit in this hole." She pointed at the ground.

Naruto blinked at her. A thousand little lights seemed to be going off and on in his head.

"Wait!" He stuttered. "You're telling me that my necklace opens the vault? _This _vault! I won this necklace from Tsunade-obachan! It belonged to Shodaime! It's just a necklace. What you're saying doesn't make any sense!"

"It doesn't?" Sakura asked, looking up at him.

Naruto pulled the string out of his shirt and over his head, looking at the little stone as if he'd never seen it before. Hadn't Ronoa-jisan told him it was valuable?

"_Anyway, kid, since you obviously don't know the value this necklace, I'm going to keep it until you learn to protect it."_

"_What? You can't do that! I know how valuable it is! It belonged to the first Hokage."_

"_If that's all you know, then you don't know the half of it."_

And hadn't Ero-Sennin told him it was worth at least two mountains? And yet, Tsunade wouldn't pawn it off, even though it was in her nature. It had belonged to her grandfather… The first Hokage… The founder of Konoha… Naruto grew anxious. Whatever was in the vault was either very valuable or very dangerous.

With shaking hands, knelt by Sakura and stuck the largest stone into the hole. It fit perfectly. The three all gathered around the hole. The door behind them morphed shut and they were thrown into pure darkness. Before anyone could say anything, however, small puffs of green light began to meander out of the walls. They filled the circular room with a sickly tinge of green that looked almost ancient. Naruto tried to grab one but it floated away from his hand as though the wind generated from the motion had propelled it away. But he kept trying.

Sakura and Sasuke stood up and looked around.

"Is this it?" Sakura wondered.

Naruto chased the balls of light right into the wall.

"Ow!" he yelped. "That little bastard…"

"Would you quit fooling around?" Sakura bellowed, stomping over to him and grabbing his ear.

"Ow! Sakura-chan! Sto-"

Both of them felt a hand on their shoulder. Sasuke came up behind them and pointed to the wall Naruto had plowed into.

The wall was covered in seals of all kinds. They formed the shape of a door with the word "Seal" written on it. The three exchanged nervous glances and Sakura pulled the scroll out of her pocket. At once the floating green lights shot at the scroll, as though it had some manner of gravitational force.

"Hmmm…" Sakura contemplated, turning the glowing scroll over in her hands. "But how do you use it to unseal the gate?"

Sasuke folded his arms over his chest.

"Well," he began, "to seal and to summon are almost the same things."

"So if we accept that, then this might be just like summoning." Sakura whispered. "But how do we summon what is inside this? I've never used a scroll to summon. I have a blood contract with slugs."

"What about the way Kakashi-sensei does it?" Naruto pointed out. "He uses a scroll to summon all his dogs."

"It's worth a try." Sakura said as she stepped into the middle of the floor again.

She took a deep breath and bit her thumb. She threw open the scroll and slid her blood across the entanglement of words, the green fireflies propelling away in all directions and then coming back when the scroll had rewound itself. Sakura made a couple of seals with the scroll and slammed it on top of Naruto's necklace. Naruto began to protest but the glowing lights shot out like bullets from the scroll and into the wall, where they literally became the inscriptions. The glowing inscriptions began to grow outward, like something was squeezing itself out, embossing themselves on the wall. They bled together, forming bands, circling the room. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura looked down and saw that the phenomenon was happening on the ground too, but they could see it more closely now. The stuff pushing itself out of the inscriptions, it was wood. Sakura understood then that a tree was pushing itself out of the engravings like water and molding together. Naruto and Sasuke leapt away from the door-like pattern as it grew into a true gateway. Leave sprouted out as the pleased and branches jutted out and meshed together. It was in the middle of this gateway, where the sign labeled "Seal" stood, they noticed something had begun to grow. At first, Sakura thought it was a fruit, but it soon became cylindrical. It kept growing and growing until it was half the size of Naruto, and she finally realized what it was. A large, thick scroll dangled from the tree limbs, read to be picked.

Sakura hurried forward and caught the scroll as it fell. Suddenly, the glowing lights were back and floating around like fireflies. One passed benignly over the title on the scroll. Sakura gasped. She fell to her knees. Naruto and Sasuke came up behind her and peered over her shoulder.

"Mokuton Hijutsu: Jukai Kōtan."

"This… This is…" Naruto stuttered.

"Shodaime's technique, the Forest Genesis." Sakura replied hoarsely. "He used this technique to build Konohagakure."

The three of them stared in awe at it for a while, before Sakura pulled back the page.

"We should bring it home before you read it." Sasuke said, tearing himself away and looking behind at the sealed door.

"But how?" Naruto cried. He pulled out his yellow dagger and began carving at the wood blocking his necklace, but to no avail. The wood grew right back. "We need to get the necklace out to open the door."

"Ingenious." Sakura whispered slowly, tearing her eyes from the scroll. "You can't open the door without the key, you can't get the key with the tree there, but to get rid of the tree you need to put the scroll back. This vault is designed so you _can't_ take the scroll even if you have both keys."

Naruto and Sasuke thought about this for a moment.

"Then what are you suppose to do?" Naruto asked.

"Maybe we should copy it." Sakura looked aback at the scroll. Sasuke came up behind her, glared at the words, and then stumbling backward, blinking furiously as though someone had stabbed him in the eye.

"Sharingan is out." He explained. "It's these green lights. They're messing everything up."

"Lemme see." Naruto came up on Sakura's other side.

"What are you going to do?"

He held out his left arm and flipped his dagger in his right.

"I'm going to carve it into my skin."

"What?"

"Idiot! Sasuke cried. "You don't even have enough skin for the entire contents of this scroll. You-"

"Shut up." Naruto snapped. "I just wanna try it."

With Sakura and Sasuke still protesting, Naruto read the first word: "The" and poised the dagger over his arm. He tapped the blade against his skin and suddenly, everything went dark; the green lamps had instantly flickered into nonexistence and they were thrown into a pitch-black void. Naruto removed the blade and they came back on, casting Sakura and Sasuke's unamused faces in green.

"Well, we ruled that out." Naruto laughed sheepishly.

"As well as any other manner of writing it down." Sasuke muttered.

"I guess there's only one way to do it." Sakura grimaced.

"There is?" Naruto gasped.

"I'm going to have to memorize it."

Naruto and Sasuke stared at her, aghast, and then exchanged worried looks.

"Are you serious?" Naruto whispered.

Sakura nodded.

"Can you do it?"

"Kikyou-sama gave me this task because she thought I could." She smiled grimly up at him. "I have to at least try."

Naruto's smile blazed across his face.

"Alright! You can do it, Sakura-chan!"

"You both can leave. This may take a while"

"Nah." Sasuke sat down next to her. "We'll stay right here with you."

-

Tsunade sprayed a mouthful of tea all over Aoba.

"WHAT!"

He cleared his throat and wiped his glasses with the back of his sleeve.

"I said Vault 26 of the Zosho Grand Archive has been opened."

Shizune dropped the pile of papers she was holding.

"That's impossible." Tsunade snapped.

"Hokage-sama, we received a letter from Zosho just now by carrier falcon." He held up a tea-stain piece of paper.

"Let me see that!" And without waiting for a response, Tsunade tore the memo from Aoba's hands.

To Godaime Hokage-same of the Village Hidden in the Leaves,  
In accordance with Article 1, Section 5 of the Zosho International Archive Founder's Coded of Conduct, we hereby inform you that, on the day of June 27th, on the hour of 13:12, Vault 26 was accessed by person(s) carrying both access keys. As stated in Article 2, Section 3, Subsection 1 of the Code of Conduct, the country in ownership accepts full responsibility for persons acquiring from Vaults 11-30. Vault 26 falls within the jurisdiction of Fire Country and any damages induced by Item 26 are the responsibility of said country. Zosho International Archive cannot claim responsibility for any life or property damages, nor can be held responsible. In addition, if the contents of Vault 26 were obtained without the consent of the leader of the presiding country, it is that country's responsibility to deal justice and return item 26 to Zosho and both keys to their own custody.In signing, you have read and accepted the contents of this memorandum. Please, read, sign and return within 28 days or face inquiry.  
Zosho International Archive

Tsunade read it three times, each time her face getting paler and paler.

"Is there a problem, Hokage-sama?" Aoba inquired.

She looked at him as though he'd just gone insane.

"'Is there a problem, Hokage-sama?'" Of course there's a problem! A very serious problem!"

"Did you not approve access to Vault 26?"

Tsunade threw Aoba an incredulous look.

"Write to Zosho immediately. Tell them I didn't." She threw a piece of pre-signed paper at Aoba. "Tell them to shut the Archive down or start doing security checks or something!" Aoba quickly rushed out the door.

"Tsunade-sama…" Shizune whispered, regathering her paper.

"Shit!" Tsunade collapsed back into her chair. "What the hell is going on! This doesn't make sense!"

"Do you think it was Orochimaru?" Shizune asked. "We didn't find the necklace with Naruto's things, and you said he probably took their bodies…"

"He could've done _anything_ with it." Tsunade placed her face in her hands. "And what about the other key? Damn that Kikyou… if I _ever _see her again…"

"But the scroll can be reproduced, right?" Shizune said fairly, a bead of sweat running down the side of her face. "Orochimaru might have made a copy of it. It's the necklace that can never be replaced."

"That's true." Tsunade looked up. "Either way, we need to get to the bottom of this. Whoever opened that vault probably knows what happened to Naruto's body and then by default Sakura, Sasuke, Orochimaru and Kabuto as well. Where's Jiraiya?"

"Jiraiya-sama is currently hunting Orochimaru in Sound Territory." Shizune answered.

Tsunade cursed.

"Send him a copy of this anyway." She held up the letter. "Maybe he'll investigate. What about Kakashi?"

"We've had no word from Hatake Kakashi-san in 10 days," saluted Shizune.

Tsunade swore again.

"That stupid brat!" She raved. "I _ordered_ him not to go into Lightning Country. Wait for word from him, just in case he really _has_ gone up there, that idiot. I don't want to blow his cover.

"Goddam it!" Tsunade slammed her fists on her desk, almost breaking it. "Where are all my people when I need them!" She began to pull papers out of her desk. "We need to send someone _now_. Please tell me we've got someone."

"This team just got back." Shizune said, handing Tsunade a piece of paper from the top of her pile. The Hokage looked at the sheet and then at Shizune.

"Perfect." She announced. "Tell them they can sleep on the boat."

* * *

Author's Note: Whew... sorry that took so long. As most of you know I was studying abroad for the past couple of months, and therefor I couldn't update. (and btw, STUDYING ABROAD ROCKS! If you ever have the oppurtunity to, do it! Yay, London!) and, even though I was away, I still found a couple chances to write, so don't expect to wait six months for the next chapter, it's already done. :) Just some quick things: I love the Forest Genesis! And don't forget what wigs Naruto Sasuke and Sakura are wearing. I won't tell you why though. :P aaaand... I can't think of anything else. Please feel free to ask me if you are confused by anything.  
Once again, I'd like to thank you all for being so supportive and sticking through with me even if I dissappear for a couple months. I love you all! 

Next Chapter: What is our hero's next plan? Especially with the arrival of an uninvited guest!


	35. Backdraft

**Chapter 35: Backdraft**

Naruto flew out the main doors of the International Library as though it had spit him out and collapsed on the marble stairs. A fresh tropical breeze ruffled his hair, Shodaime's pendant, still warm from use pressed against him chest. He sighed and would have fallen asleep right there if Sasuke hadn't stepped on him.

"Ow!" Naruto wheezed, curling around the pain. "You… bastard."

"If you don't want to be stepped on, don't lie there." The other snapped, readjusting a sleeping Sakura on his back and beginning down the stairs.

Naruto pulled himself up and stretched. 11 hours, they'd been down there, in the depths of the foul library, for 11 hours, without food or sunlight. Naruto felt like a goldfish set free; he had never liked staying in one place for a long time especially a library. He never wanted to see Vault 26 ever again. Sasuke spent the majority of histime trying to make shuriken float around with Kouji's technique and Naruto had spent most of _his_ time trying to knock them down. Sakura, on the other hand, sat in one place, unmoving expect to roll the scroll for the entire duration.

_No wonder she got such good grades at the academy,_ Naruto thought in awe,_ with an attention span like that…_

At the end of hour 10, Sakura promptly closed the scroll, as though she'd only been reading for two minutes, announced she was done and fell over, asleep, leaving the two boys to the scroll away and carry her out of the building.

Naruto scampered down the stairs after Sasuke, determined not to be left behind. It was nearly midnight but people were still coming and going on the streets below. The library glowed like an unearthly orb with its sparkling windows; Naruto could barely see the stars. They reached the end of the stairs and began their cobblestone trek back to the hotel. The street lamps sectioned off ovals of street and all around them restaurants were putting up "closed" signs.

"Aw man…" Naruto muttered, rubbing his grumbling stomach as they passed a noodle house. He scrunched his face against the emptiness, but soon replaced the expression with sneaky one.

Silently, he ducked into a dark alley. Sasuke stopped, readjusted Sakura on his shoulders and glared into black shadows.

"What are you doing?" He hissed. He wanted to go home. Exercising his chakra all day had worn him out; in fact, Sasuke had no idea why _he_ was carrying Sakura.

"Just hold these." Naruto popped out of the darkness and shoved a couple things into Sasuke hand.

"What?" Sasuke looked down and saw Naruto's brown wig and Mitsurugi's headband in his fist. "Hey, wait a-"Naruto snuck back into the shadows. Sasuke heard the clap of a hasty seal being made and "Henge!" A puff of smoke billowed out from the alley. Sasuke looked both ways up the street, in terror, to see if anyone saw. To his horror, a well-dressed couple had just turned the corner and was headed straight for them. Hands tied with Sakura on his back, Sasuke hastily blew on the smoke, like you would to birthday candles, in a pathetic attempt to push it back into the alley.

All the couple focused on, however, was a strange long-haired boy, with what appeared to be an unconscious girl on his back and a dead rodent in his had, blowing into an alleyway. They threw him nervous glances and hurried past, breaking into a chorus of whispers and they walked off. A vein throbbed in Sasuke's forehead and he turned to the alley to berate Naruto, but the boy seemed to have vanished. Instead, a blonde girl stuck her head out of the shadows and looked around, blonde pigtails swinging freely.

"They gone?" She said and bounded out. Sasuke blinked a few times. He was so use to seeing this girl nude that it was shocking to her clothed. Naruto hadn't been very forgiving though; he'd dressed her in rags. Sasuke _did_ notice, however, that the rags had been arranged in a way that showed off her best features.

"What the hell are you doing?" He growled.

"Getting us food." Naruto giggled, strutting across the road toward the noodle house. "Watch and learn."

A shift worker was just putting up the Closed sign when Naruto approached. Naruto whimpered, hunched and touch the glass door with a shaking finger, staring up at the poor shift worker with large tear-filled blue eyes. The worker looked as though he was going to cry for a minute, then dashed into kitchen and reappeared with a hot take-away carton of some kind of soup. Naruto took the box with trembling hands and tears in his eyes, and, as the shift worker waved a sorrowful goodbye and closed the shop curtains, sauntered over to Sasuke, his reward high and laughing.

Naruto did this at every open restaurant they passed and by the time they got home, he had a buffet of delicious food precariously balanced in both hands.

"Ah, it's been so long since I've done that." Naruto sighed as Sasuke lay Sakura on the bed. "Can't do that in Konoha anymore. People remember me."

"You shoulder be grateful Sakura's asleep." Sasuke muttered, sitting beside her on the edge of the bed. "She'd beat you so hard."

"Well, we better make sure she doesn't find out then." Naruto chuckled, handing a Styrofoam box to his partner in crime.

Sasuke smirked and peeled the lid back.

"I can't promise that."

"You bastard!" Naruto flung a box of rice at him.

-

Sakura did, of course, find out. The brothers-in-secrecy made several fatal mistakes. A. They hadn't really cleaned anything before they fell asleep. B. They _had_ gone to sleep, and Sakura woke up first. And C. They'd saved her some. No harm done, in their opinion, except some yelling and a bruise for Naruto, they hadn't really planned on keeping it a secret anyway.

After she'd eaten and was much happier, Sakura led them down to the beach. They walked a ways down it and let their toes eat the sand. The hot ocean breeze toy with their wigs and the sun crisped their skin. Sakura crouched down by the water and let the waves eat her feet.

"So what's our next move?" Sasuke asked, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"What do you mean?" She asked. The waves rose and covered her feet to her ankles.

"Shouldn't you be copying the Jukai Kōtan down?" Naruto suggested.

"Nah. That would defeat the purpose of having it permanently secured in the library. Besides," She looked over her shoulder and smiled at him, "I don't need to. I've got it all up here." She pointed to her forehead.

"You can remember the _entire_ thing?" Naruto gawked. "_All _of it?"

"Of course." She flashed him a "V" for Victory.

"So what are you going to do?" Sasuke kicked a nearby shell, only to discover a crab inside. The creature quickly scurried away.

"Well, if I'm going to learn this technique, we have to head for the mainland." Sakura tucked a lock of fake platinum blonde hair behind her ear. "I can't do it here. This island…" She reached behind her and scooped up a handful of dry sand, "… is all sand. I can't grow trees here." She let the grains slip through her fingers into the waves.

"The mainland…" Sasuke thought out loud. "Getting back into Lightning Country will be near impossible, and we were kicked out of Water Country. The only other options are…"

"Fire Country and Sound Territory." Sakura stood up and faced. The three exchanged grim looks, all thinking the same thing.

"And even if we could… we don't have any money." Sakura added

Naruto sat down in the sand.

"I wish we hadn't left," he sighed, looking out over the sea. "I wish we were still in Konoha."

"I know." Sakura half-smiled at him in sympathy. "I miss it too, but until we know we're not a danger to the village, we can't go back. And that may take a while."

"Knowing Orochimaru," Sasuke whispered, "it may take forever."

They all stared glumly over the sea. The blue seemed endless, but on the other side somewhere, beyond the horizon, they knew were both friends and foes, neither awaiting them with open arms.

"Ahhh!" Naruto stood up. Depressed moods never worked for him. "We'll just have to kick their asses!"

Both Sasuke and Sakura blinked at him and then gave him sly looks.

"I hope that's not your solution to all your problems." Sakura snickered.

"Why not? It works on all my problems!"

"We still haven't figured out the problem of where we are going to go." Sasuke said, reaching over a couple of feet and picking up a stick. He began to draw a rough map in the sand of their surrounding area, including Lightning Country, Sound Territory, the land bridge between them, Fire Country and their current location.

"Now," he explained. "We could go to anywhere on this map."

"The only problem is," Sakura interjected, "only four of these places have major ports. Here at Fire Country," she drew a circle on Fire Country's east coast, "here at Lightning Country," she drew a circle where Sorano ought to be, "here in Water Country," she circled point on it, "and here in Sound Territory." She drew her last circle on the Sound Territory peninsula.

"So this land bridge is out?" Naruto asked, pointing to the unclaimed area between the Sound and Lightning.

"Right," Sakura said. "Unless we get a private charter, but those are expensive. Our only logical choice should be Sound Territory. We haven't heard anything about Orochimaru returning there, so the area will probably be in shambles, which means, hopefully, that their immigration and identification will be as well. But only if it's okay with you, Sasuke." She looked up at him in concern.

The Hidden Sound Village. If there was one place Sasuke never wanted to be again… well, it'd probably be the land Itachi created with Tsukiyomi, but the Hidden Sound Village was a close second. It had stolen so much from him, his integrity, his friends, even a little piece of his mind. The time he lived there, the things he had done while he was there, he'd rather have forgotten.

"We don't have much of a choice." He sighed.

Naruto and Sakura still gave him concerned looks.

"I'll be fine." He reassured them. "We won't have to be there that long. Look." He pointed the stick at the sand map. "There's a trade route that runs from Lightning Country to Earth Country. If we follow that, we'll get out of there in no time."

"We still haven't solved our money crisis." Sakura pointed out. "We might have to stay here a while to earn enough money."

"I don't know." Naruto hugged himself as though he were cold. "I think we should leave as soon as possible. I have a bad feeling about staying here."

"But Naruto, we can't go anywhere without money."

"I know. I just have a feeling that something bad is going to happen." Naruto made a face and looked around suspiciously as though the brisk summer wind had it out for him.

"Eh?" Naruto glared at a place beyond Sasuke's shoulders. The other two turned to look and saw two men trotting in their direction. Both men were walking atop the white sand as though it was made of hot coals, one of them carrying a hefty camera. They came cantering down the beach like they hated it.

"Excuse me!" The lead man called out, waving a hand in their general direction. "You there!"

Naruto pointed questionably to himself. Sasuke cocked a quizzical eyebrow. The speaker, followed closely by the camera man, charged up to them, blew the two boys aside and grasped Sakura's hand like she was the Hokage.

Sasuke's hand tightened on the stick; Naruto put his hand behind his back and secretly under his shirt, clasping his stainless-steel dagger. Neither intruder seemed to realize they were about to die; the first man continued to clench Sakura's hand and the camera man jumped up to get a picture of her. Before he could, however, Sakura grabbed the camera lens giving him a nice black shot of her palm. He tried to yank it away, but his strength was no match for hers and remained hung in suspended animation.

"May I help you?" Sakura asked the first man faux-sweetly., yanking her hand away.

"Heh," the first man straightened himself into a dignified position.

"Excuse me, Miss," he began suavely. "We're doing an article for a magazine about the most beautiful things in Zosho. I hope you don't mind if we take your picture."

The trio blinked at him in unison.

"In other words, you're going around taking pictures of pretty women." Sakura asked skeptically. "This isn't a reputable magazine, is it? That's why you're not going to the more crowded beaches?"

The man busily adjusted his flowered shirt. "I don't see how it matters." He replied gruffly.

"Uck!" Naruto burst out. "It's one of those sleazy magazines Ero-senin likes, isn't it?"

The man irritably pushed Naruto and his question aside and approached Sakura.

"Hmmm…" Sakura rubbed her chin.

"You're actually considering this!" Sasuke hissed, not caring whether the two strangers could hear. Naruto made a step toward the two sleazebags, but Sakura answered before he could.

"Okay!" She said cheerfully. Both Naruto and Sasuke looked like they had seen the apocalypse. "But first, I have a few questions."

"Yes?" said the man, who looked as though his birthday had come early.

"Where is your magazine distributed?"

"In Grass territory, parts of Water Country, Lightning Country, some Areas of Earth Country and a couple little towns in between."

"Anywhere in Fire Country or Sound Country?"

"Well, no, but-"

"Good. Next question: how much do you pay?"

Naruto and Sasuke snapped out of their horrified trance and Sakura shot a look at each of them, a mischievous twinkle in her eye. It took them a second, but they caught her drift, smirking evilly.

The article writer seemed not to notice, because he went on talking as though nothing had happened.

"I'm sorry," he explained, flexing his fingers together. "Participating in this is strictly on a volunteer basis. If you aren't interested, we're more than willing to find someone else."

"Really?" Naruto exclaimed. "Where?"

The entire group looked up and down the beach. Between the pale spread of sand and the dark abyss of the sea, Sakura was the only thing female as far as the eye could see.

"Okay, okay," the solicitor yelped hastily, "I'll pay you 10."

"Sure," Sasuke shrugged. "And we'll make sure to tell the police hello for you when they come looking."

"What?"

"Well," Sasuke sneered, coming up behind him. "I don't think what you're doing is legal. You pretty much said it yourself. Your magazine doesn't publish on this island. It's going to be pretty hard to forget we saw you with just 10."

"Fine… 20."

"And you were even going to rip us off!" Naruto exclaimed, coming around to the man's other side. "I wonder how many other girls you've scammed-"

"30!"

"And there's also the fact that she's underage." Sasuke sighed. "I don't think that's legal anywhere-"

"Fine, fine, but this is where I draw the line! 40!"

"Per shot." Sakura demanded. "Paid up front."

The boys took the man's money as Sakura freed the photographer's camera. At once he started snapping pictures of her.

"You know," he said from behind the rapid clicking, "you look just like that pageant contestant, Haruko, the one who got first runner up and then disappeared off the face of the earth about a month and a half ago.

Sakura turned around, feigning bashfulness and unhooked the pageant necklace from around her neck.

"No, that's impossible." She faked a blush.

"Yeah!" said the magazine writer, handing a wad of cash to Sasuke. "Haruko was a lot prettier!"

-

"I can't believe you did that, Sakura-chan." Naruto grumbled. "At least let me go back and kick his ass."

Sakura laughed. "No, you idiot. At least we have money now. He didn't take anything that sleazy too. I'm not even wearing a bikini."

Afternoon set in as they walked along the pier. The smell of fish and sea brine courted their noses as they passed tour boats and fishing rigs, all lined up equally along the dark, weather-stained boards.

A large departure listing greeted them at the boat house. All three peered at it like small children, running their fingers over the times and price ranges.

"Here's one." Naruto yelped, stabbing the list with his finger. The others leaned in closer to look.

"Leaves tomorrow at 12:30…" Sasuke muttered. "Good." But inside, he felt a little queasy.

"Alright." Naruto mumbled. "Let's go get some food now, okay?"

"Naruto, you idiot!" Sakura gasped. "We need to save our money."

"Don't worry," Naruto said chipperly. "It's my treat!"

"You're going to use the Sexy no Jutsu again, aren't you?" Sasuke grumbled.

Naruto laughed sheepishly.

"Naruto!" Sakura fumed.

"What?" He cried defensively. "If you can us your body to get money, so can I!"

They bickered all the way back down the pier. As they turned the corner back to land, a boat pulled in and anchored itself at the dock. Many people disembarked, but only four looked as though they weren't on vacation,

"Well, team," their eccentric leader announced as they stepped off the boat, "we're here!" Let's do our best!"

His subordinates, two boys and a girl, stepped off behind him. One of the boys yawned and the girl rubbed her eyes.

"C'mon, team!" the leader cried, "We're in the springtime of youth!"

"With the amount of sleep we're getting," the girl stretched, "that won't last long."

"C'mon." The tallest boy, with the longest hair, shoved past his comrades and stepped onto the wooden pier. "Let's get this over with."

"Hai…" the girl muttered sleepily.

"Alright troops!" The leader announced, pointing toward the city and guiding them away from the boat.

The last boy put his arms in the air and cried, "Yes, Gai-sensei!"

And Team Gai entered Zosho.

-

A long night greeted Naruto. He kept waking up; he didn't know why, perhaps it was because he was hungry: Sakura hadn't let him spange for food. Perhaps it was because, half an hour after she fell asleep, Sakura threw her arm over him: he definitely couldn't sleep after that. But even that wasn't entirely it either. He was restless, antsy, but he didn't know why.

Naruto pulled out his backpack and rummaged around in it until he found his hitai-ate. In the light of the moon, pouring in from their open window, he turned it over in his hands. He rubbed his fingers over the light scratches from his fight with Gaara and the deeper scratches from his fights with Sasuke. If the light was just right, it looked a little flat from when Kabuto hit him. Hastily, before he lost his nerve, he strapped it to his forehead. He remembered the first time he wore it and felt how well it molded to his head, like an extra layer of skin.

Careful not to wake his companions, Naruto clambered around and sat on the open windowsill, letting his feet dangle over the edge, swinging them in the salty breeze. He remained like that for quite some time, reminiscing about the past, until the feeling came over him again. He had the internal instinct to either run and hide or bare his fangs and fight to the death. He had to remind himself he didn't have fangs.

Naruto tiptoed around the bed toward the door. Maybe a walk would help. His hand tightened around the cool brass knob.

"Where are you going?"

Naruto spun around. Sasuke glared at him from where he sat on the edge of the bed.

"For a walk," Naruto answered shortly. "I can't sleep."

"Me neither." Sasuke got up and pulled on his vest.

"You're coming with me?"

"Yes, to make sure you don't do anything stupid." Sasuke adjusted his collar. "For starters, get rid of the hitai-ate. You're going to get us killed."

"It's late!" Naruto reasoned. "No one's going to notice or care."

"Whatever. Do what you want."

Naruto chuckled and led the way through the door.

-

The roofs were dark and much more private, so the boys walked along them, wigless, disguiseless. The ocean breeze ruffled their real hair for the first time, but it didn't ease their restlessness. The huge dome of the Library rose ominously in the distance, omnipresent and dominating. It was illuminated by a thousand lights, making it a beacon against the dark sea.

Naruto and Sasuke scampered across the flat rooftops and slanted ones, moving silently on the tiles as they had been taught. The streets and restaurants below were still filled with light and laughter.

Suddenly, a window broke from a bar across the street. Naruto and Sasuke halted and glared down at it. A familiar looking long-haired boy lay in the cobblestone street surrounded by glass. The bar's window was broken. Screams and the crack of shattering wood echoed from inside. People began to pour out, running away from the building as though it were diseased. Unbeknownst to Sasuke and Naruto, it did. Smoke began to billow from the broken window. The building was on fire.

-A little while earlier-

Team Gai left the library very confused and very tired. The city gleamed like and giant lantern as they wearily walked down the immense staircase, still thinking back on everything they had learned.

Tenten yawned and rubbed her grumbling stomach. She looked between her comrades. Gai-sensei, walking ahead of them, was cheerfully talking about restaurants he knew from when he was last in the city. Lee was listening with rapt attention, she was happy to see. Tenten had been concerned about him since Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura had sacrificed themselves. He'd been subdued, withdrawing himself to train alone for hours and hours at a time. She tried to consol him, but he'd just shove her off. It wasn't until Gai-sensei came back from his mission that progress began.

_You have to admit, _She thought, rubbing the red-blue-yellow bracelet on her wrist, _even with all his craziness, Gai-sensei is pretty amazing._

She looked next to Neji. He, on the other hand, had never been harder to read. He remained virtually the same; he talked the same, he walked the same, he spent a little more time training with his uncle Hiashi, but he acted the same. Tenten knew, however, that he wasn't the same. _No one_ was the same. The weird thing about dying, people tend to realize how different everything is without you around. The hospital where Sakura trained had become dark and quiet; people often themselves stared at the cherry blossom tree in the courtyard for long periods of time. The libraries and archives where Sasuke had spent most of his time on probation seemed dustier, and the Uchiha shrine seemed 200 years older than it really was. The entire city seemed darker. Suddenly, it was a crime to be blonde, even without pigtails. Bookstore owners would chase you out of their shops, screaming thing about the hentai aisle and Sexy no Jutsu. Ino complained that she would dye her hair black if this kept up. There was a seat in Ichiraku Ramen where no one ever sat. Neji couldn't possibly be indifferent.

Tenten had actually gone investigating. She went to the Hyuuga household, where he spent most of his time. She tried to talk to Hinata, but Hinata was no longer talking, or eating, or sleeping. She'd asked Hanabi, but the young girl just gave her a death glare and escorted off the premises. Tenten finally arranged a meeting with Hiashi and all he told her was that people deal with grief in different ways. Gai-sensei had told her the same thing. She sensed they both see something she couldn't.

Tenten, on the other hand, had never been close to Team Seven. Sure, she'd thought Sasuke was cute and Naruto was amazing for the way he'd changed her teammates. She had been slightly jealous of Sakura because Tsunade-sama favored her, but she'd never been as close to the three as the others had been. But not even Tenten was unaffected. Occasionally, she felt sick or nauseas and would have to sit down. A little spark of regret burned in her heart every time she thought of Team Seven; she would have _liked _to have known them better.

This trip to Zosho would be good for them, she hoped. Ino's trip to Sea Biscuit seemed to restore her, so Tenten thought maybe this trip would inspire the same rejuvenation but so far it had been nothing but confusing. What they had discovered in the library… if it was true, it must reported to the Hokage immediately.

But right now they needed to eat. They had many nights of no sleep ahead of them; they would need to investigate this more thoroughly.

The four of them strolled into the town, hoping that some place was still open. Apparently, none of Gai's favorite places were and they slowly grew more irritable as their hunger did.

"Okay, team!" Gai announced in an attempt to raise their spirits. "The next place we see is where we're going!"

That place, they heard it before they saw it. A large green building blared with lively party-goers. Gai and Lee cheered, Tenten rubbed her head, Neji looked irritated but said nothing. The small restaurant sat under a hotel, all adorned in the same green with little pink flowers around the bottom. As they walked in a large crowd in the back cheered. They swung bottles of champagne and dressed unusually fancy. Tenten understood at once when she saw a woman in a wedding dress in the middle.

An old man swung over to them and put an arm around Gai, but it seemed more for stability than friendliness.

"Hey there!" the man cried jovially, taking a swing from his wine bottle, not even caring that some splashed on the floor. "My daughter just got married, isn't that great?" He took another gulp.

While Gai muttered his congratulations and thing about the spring time of youth, Neji sat down at a small booth nest to the window. A little candle in a glass flickered on the mahogany table. Tenten took a seat across from him and immediately found herself under the scrutiny of more partiers.

"What a cute girl!" exclaimed what appeared to be somebody's aunt. She reached out to pinch Tenten's cheek, but Neji grabbed her hand. The two glared each other down for a moment, Tenten actually thought Neji might fight the old woman, but the aunt merely stepped away, blatantly offended.

"You didn't need to do that, Neji." Tenten whispered. "I wouldn't have minded."

Neji said nothing, but glared down at his menu and began to read it through the cover.

Gai had been dragged off into a group of people where he was entertaining them with stories. Lee on the other hand, had been grasped by the father of the bride and was being led around as the poor man told him about how great the groom was.

"And I'll tell you, son." He hiccupped. "If you act like that, you'll have no problems with women."

"Yessir!" Lee cried, in all seriousness.

"You're a good kid." The elderly man patted Lee on the back. "Here have some of this wine. The groom's family is paying for it." And before Lee could protest, he pushed the bottle into Lee's mouth and tilted it back.

Gai sensed the trouble before Lee even gulped. He looked over the groom's cousin's head and saw Lee stumble, as though injured, away from the old man, pushing the aunt away from the table where his comrades sat and slammed his hands down on the edge of the table, his head hung. Neji and Tenten peered curiously at him. Gai called out to them, but all the focused on was Lee's crazed expression as he looked up.

Lee cackled like an old man. Tenten slid along the bench and hoisted herself over the back, Neji lay flat and rolled under the table as Lee grasped the sides and ripped it clean out of the floor. He swung it right, tossing it at the wedding party. Gai nearly tripped over the groom's cousin as he leapt up and smashed the table with a well aimed punch.

"Lee!" he cried, still tangled in the groom's cousin. Lee said nothing but turned back to Neji.

"Whatcha so angry fuuur?" Lee slurred as he aimed an ax-kick at Neji. Neji rolled to the side, avoiding the blow which cracked the floor boards, and flipped to his feet, assuming his battle stance. Lee gave a terrific battle cry and began a furry of attacks.

"You- outa- lighten up-!" Lee said between blows. Neji dodged the punches by dipping low and aimed a blow at Lee's stomach. Lee avoided Neji's palm by stumbling backwards drunkenly, but on his way, he hit a table. The candle-in-a-cup fell off and smashed to the ground. Neji swung his arm around in an attempt to swipe Lee's throat. Lee caught his hand and swung his other hand at Neji's side, which Neji moved to block. At the last millisecond, Lee faked, pulled his arm back and struck Neji in the chest. Neji barely hand time to block before Lee sent him crashing through the window and into the street.

The candle that had fallen earlier hit some spilled wine. The floor burst into flames. The partiers looked from Neji, rolling to his knees 20 feet away, to Lee, roaring like a beast, illuminated by the flames, and screamed. Slipping and sliding, they all crammed through the door and poured out into the street.

The cousin scrambled away, leaving Gai free. Tenten reached into her pocket for a scroll, but Lee grabbed her arm first.

"Fighting girls is bad!" Lee cried and tossed her through the wall of flames and into the approaching Gai.

"Gai-sensei, what should we do?" She yelled in desperation as he helped her to her feet. Neji had returned and began a whirl of jabbing attacks. The flames had engulfed the entire room." Gai glared grimly into the flames.

"We need to evacuate the hotel residents." He said.

"But what about Lee!" Tenten coughed.

"Don't worry about him! I don't think anything can touch him in this state and we need to get everyone out." Gai hooked his com-link around his ear, Tenten did the same. Neji straight through Lee's torso as he dodged an attack, saw what the others were doing and did the same, stumbling out of Lee's grasp for a moment.

"Whatcha doin' thar?" Lee hiccupped. "You should take off that jacket. It's hot in here!" He planted his palm on Neji's chest, propelling him out of the building again. Neji slid across the street, over the broken glass and cobblestones. He thought he saw two shadows leap from the top of the building behind him and tried to get up.

"No, Neji, stay down!" Gai called through the com-link. "You have to lay there and tell me which rooms have people. Tenten, set up an emergency escape. Alert the neighbors and make sure the fire doesn't spread. And don't worry about Lee!" Neji lay down in the street and looked up at the building. He never noticed two people run into the blazing inferno.

-

About a mile away, Sakura sat bolt upright in bed. Something was wrong; she didn't need to see the empty spaces beside her to know that.

-

Tenten left through the side door. For Lee, only one target remained. He launched himself at Gai, swooping around him and meeting his skillful dodgery. Gai allowed Lee to maneuver him to the stairs.

_It'll be difficult to rescue people if I have to fight him at the same time, _Gai blanched. He trotted up a few steps and looked around. Lee seemed to have vanished. Everywhere flames roared, obstructing any imaginable view.

"Lee!" Gai called into the blaze. For a few moments, there was no answer. He called again.

"Lee!"

"Hey! Who are you people? Three against one isn't fair!" Lee shouted from somewhere among the flames.

Gai cursed to himself

_Hang on, Lee! This will only take a second. _He charged up the stairs and out of sight.

-

The second they saw Neji thrown out of the restaurant for a second time, Naruto and Sasuke had a pretty good idea of what was going on. They bounded off the roof and plummeted into the fire infested establishment, throwing themselves at Lee. The three of them rolled and tumbled to the floor. Out of the corner of somewhere, Naruto heard Gai called Lee's name. Lee rolled and threw Naruto off; he slid onto his feet across unburnt floor. Sasuke pinned Lee to the floor, Lee pulled his knees up quickly and Sasuke had to flip himself over Lee's head to avoid the attack. Sasuke stumbled to his feet on the coal black floor and whirled to face his drunken opponent. Lee hopped to his feet and turned face them.

Gai called out Lee's name again.

"Hey! Who are you people?" Lee cried. "Three against one isn't fair!"

"Shit." Naruto cursed. Sasuke's face agreed with him

Gai yelled something else and continued up the stairs.

"Where's he going?" Naruto coughed.

"I don't know." Sasuke wiped his forehead. "But we better hurry up here. He could be back at any time."

Lee squinted at them.

"You guys look familiar." He launched himself at Sasuke. "Have we met before?"

Sasuke caught Lee's fist. Naruto came charging behind him and aimed a kick at Lee's side. Lee stopped the kick by raising his left knee. Naruto hit his shin and Lee horse-kick him in the stomach, twirling to hit Sasuke in the side just as Naruto had tried to do to him. Sasuke grabbed for Lee's leg, but Lee faked, planting the foot on the ground. Naruto had recovered and came diving for Lee's exposed middle. Lee reached up and grabbed Sasuke's arm, which was holding his fist, and hoisted Sasuke over his should and smashed him down on top of the oncoming Naruto.

Naruto caught Sasuke on his back and Sasuke slid to the ground, pulling Lee's fist with him, giving Naruto a clear shot at Lee's middle. With no time to draw his fists back, Naruto went in for a head butt. Lee placed his free hand on Naruto's back, pushing him into the ashy wooden ground. As if to solidify Naruto's face's relationship with the floor, Lee bounced with both feet off the back of his head and kicked Sasuke's back, propelling himself into a back flip. Sasuke let go of Lee's fist as he buckled forward and Lee flipped, arcing over Naruto. He landed safely on the other side, struck a gymnastics pose and took a bow.

Naruto and Sasuke got hurriedly to their feet, coughing. The ash in the air ate away at their throats. Lee struck a pose to attack again.

Something came crashing through the wall behind Lee and kicked him in the back, hard. He flew halfway across the room, between Naruto and Sasuke, before performing a flip and stopping himself. Sakura, landed gracefully in the room, her pink hair flowing in the heat of the flames that surrounded them. She doubled over, breathing hard, and then wheeled on Naruto and Sasuke.

"You idiots!" She cried. "That's Lee!" She pointed to the stumbling figure who was glaring at Sakura as though toes grew out of her forehead. "What the hell is Lee doing here?"

"You tell us!" Naruto protested.

"It's not just Lee." Sasuke pointed out. "Gai is upstairs and Neji is outside over there. Tenten should be around here somewhere too."

"He'll kill himself in this fire." Sakura covered her mouth against the smoke. "_We'll_ kill ourselves. We need to get him out of here!"

"That's what we've been trying to do!" Naruto exclaimed. "But he's too fast!"

"No luck with the Sharingan?"

"You can't read what's unreadable." Sasuke coughed. "Do you have a cure for drunkenness?"

"None that I carry around with me when I run out the door to save you!"

"You!" Lee shouted. Sakura spun around.

"Me?" She pointed to herself.

"You look familiar too!" He zoomed over. Before she could move, or Naruto and Sasuke could stop, Lee was in Sakura's face.

"Yes…" He said. She could feel the air from his nostrils and the smell of cheap champagne on is breath. "I think I know where you're from…" He stepped back and took a look at all three horrified faces. "You three look like these people I used to know." He hiccupped.

"R-really?" Naruto gulped nervously.

"Yeah!" Lee looked up projectively. "They were the best kind of –hic- people. Strong ninjas too." He looked at the ground. The trio leaned in closer.

"How… dare…" Lee's shoulders shook.

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura exchanged looks of curiosity.

"How dare you…" There was a distinct quiver in his voice. "HOW DARE YOU INPERSONATE THEM!"

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura barely had time to contemplate this as Lee came charging at them, tears streaming down his face.

"No wait, Lee!" Sakura cried. "It's us! Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura!"

"Don't lie!" Lee screamed as he launched a flying kick at her. "They're dead! They died valiantly! Something an impersonator like you would never understand!"

Naruto stepped in front of Sakura and blocked the kick with crossed arms. Sasuke grabbed Sakura and leapt away as Lee's foot met Naruto. The floor cracked beneath and broke, Lee's kick pushing Naruto into the darkness below.

"Naruto!" Sakura called as she and Sasuke landed. They both ran at Lee who flipped to safety. Sakura punched at his head. He dodged to the left and cartwheeled to the side as Sasuke delivered a drop-kick. Screaming, Lee aimed a punch at Sasuke who caught it as before. Lee's muscles flexed and the punch carried through, pulling Sasuke's arm along with it. Sasuke winced, pulling his other hand back to strike Lee's face. Sakura spun to hit Lee's left side. Lee dropped to the ground; Sakura's hand barely brushed his hair. Sasuke's left hand was in such an awkward position, he had to let go of Lee's right. Lee unleashed a spin-kick that tripped Sakura; Sasuke escaped with a jump and aimed a mid-air kick at Lee's head. Lee blocked with an arm and flung Sasuke into the wall with a push.

Sakura hopped to her and struck a heavy at Lee. He rolled out of the way just as her fist met the wood. The floor exploded like a firecracker.

Lee staggered to his feet coughing with the smoke. Suddenly, he couldn't move. He looked over his shoulder at Sasuke and then at the floor and saw their connecting shadows swaying in the fire light. Sasuke coughed and wheezed. It took all his strength to keep up the Kage Mane no jutsu (long since stolen from Shikamaru) under these circumstances.

Two pairs of hands burst through the floor, each grabbing one of Lee's ankles. Sasuke released the Kage Mane, but Lee still remained stuck. He looked around the burning building, pieces of wood falling from the ceiling, bright neon flames eating the tables and chairs. He noticed Sakura still had her hand in the hole she had made.

Sasuke came running at him. Lee leaned forward over the hole to avoid his punch. Sakura pulled her arms up and clinging to them was Naruto, dripping in dirty water; she'd caught him like a fish. As she swung him up, Naruto kicked Lee in the chin.

Sakura swung him so high, his feet met the ceiling. With some chakra adhesive, Naruto stuck himself there and swung Sakura over the gap so the she also kicked Lee in the chin (although, lightly, by her standards).

Sasuke was ready. He drew his arm back and hit Lee in the back. Lee flew over the hole and fell in. A light thud and a splash echoed up to them.

"Is he okay?" Sakura yelled as Naruto dropped her back to the floor.

A Naruto Bunshin, presumably one that held Lee's ankles, inspected Lee, who was lying in about 3 inches of water. The Bunshin turned to them and gave a thumbs up.

"We better get out of here." Sasuke coughed, clutching his chest. "Gai, Neji and Tenten will be here soon to get him."

Gagging from the smoke, all three ran out through the hole Sakura had made as an entrance.

-

Tenten ran over to Neji and knelt beside him. He sat, surrounded by broken glass and brunt wood staring at the inferno. Local fire department ran all around them, carrying their hoses and hatchets.

"Neji!" Gai's voice crackled through the com-link. "Where's Lee? Is he okay?"

"Huh?" Neji replied stupidly, letting the question permeate his brain. "Yeah, Lee's fine. Don't worry about him."

In the orange light of the blaze, Tenten swore Neji looked pale.

"Neji." She whispered. "What is it?" She shook him shoulders. "What's wrong?"

"I…" He muttered, not taking his eyes off the burning restaurant. "… don't know how to explain it."

Tenten looked at him, worried.

What Neji couldn't explain was how he saw three familiar looking people run out of the building and Neji didn't believe in ghosts.

* * *

Author's Notes: SUSPENSE! Oooo, what will Neji doooo? Anyway, the Zosho arc is over! It was kind of short, so I don't really think I need to go indepth about it much. Just like the last arc, this one had several incarnations too. Originally, they were going to have to sneak in to Zosho, pulling all sorts of Mission Impossible manuvers and being all ninja-sneaky, but I cut that. I couldn't think of a way to do it without them getting into major trouble back home. I also scheduled them having some close calls with Konoha ninja, but never actually fighting them. Although, I will say this: the part with the magazine dude and the photographer has _always_ been in the story, so don't think of it as a cop-out for them to get money. Er... I want to say more on this, but I really can't! You'll see what I mean.  
The Drunken-Lee battle was pretty much a last minute additon. It occured to me recently that our heroes haven't done anything in the area of teamwork in a while, which is sad because teamwork is basically what this story is about. So I threw Team Gai into my stew just to see what would happen. XD 

Next Chapter: Diving into hell! Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura head to Sound Territory! And what about Team Gai's report? Has their cover been blown!


	36. Clandestine

**Chapter 36: Clandestine**

For once, Tsunade read a mission report lower than A-ranked. Shizune couldn't have been more grateful as she skipped out of Tsunade's office, her arms laden with C and D rank missions. Tsunade, on the other hand, couldn't have been grimmer. A nasty part of Team Gai's report stood engraved in her mind with a bad after taste.

_When going over the surveillance footage, we could only identify two people going down into the high security vaults._ Gai wrote.

Tsunade picked up the picture again and squinted at it. The photo was grainy and pixilated, as though someone had enlarged it too much.

_As seen in the picture, the taller one had long black hair and the shorter one had platinum hair pulled back. Because no one else was seen going down to those vaults on this day, we have to assume that these people are the culprits. The video shows that they went down into the basement, but there aren't any security cameras around Vault 26, but we assume they went it. However, after that, they did something very strange. They ran back up the stairs to the section of the library designated to Hokages and appeared to kidnap someone who was reading a book up in there._

Tsunade picked up a picture of two blurs racing up the stairs and compared it with another picture of two blurs grabbing someone. Whoever they were, they were training ninja; only ninja can move that fast.

_It's difficult to tell, but we think they dragged him back down into basement. Then stayed there for approximately 10 hours and then came back up, however it looks like only two people left._

Tsunade narrowed her eyes at the pictures of the two people leaving. The long, black-haired one led the way, but the short platinum-haired one seemed to have gained weight. The short haired one may actually have been two people, but with the graininess of the photo, it was difficult to tell.

Tsunade spread the pictures out on her cluttered desk and began to examine them closer. The two culprits… one with long black-hair, one with short white hair, tied back… She knew two people who fit that description, who were smart enough to break into a maximum security vault, and good enough ninjas to never look directly at the camera and move quickly enough to avoid detection. Just the thought of both these people made Tsunade sick.

She bit her lip and began a letter to Jiraiya. If those two were involved, even if there was the slightest chance that Orochimaru and Kabuto were in Zosho, Jiraiya needed to know.

-

Three days at sea brought little comfort to the three teammates. The fight with Lee was still fresh on their minds.

"You think they were there because of us?" Naruto whispered as he stared out into the sea.

"I don't know." Sakura put her hand on top of her wig for security reasons. "but I can't think of anyway they could have found out about us being in Zosho. We were disguised."

"But we weren't on our trip to Lightning Country."

"Yeah, but Fire Country ninja aren't allowed to go up there." She sighed. "I think it's safer to assume that Konoha was alerted when we got Shodaime's scroll. I just hope our cover hasn't been blown."

"I don't think so." Naruto rested his chin on the railing and let the sea spray his face. "Lee told us that we were dead."

"That's true." Sakura rested her chin on the bar as well. "We can't take too many chances though. We should probably lie low for a while."

"Hmmm." Naruto hummed in agreement, and they both looked sideways, 20 feet away, at Sasuke. The black haired boy stood, gripping the cold metal railing on the other side of the boat, in the same place he'd been for three days.

"You think he's okay?" Naruto asked.

Sakura didn't answer. If only there was a medical remedy for this sort of thing.

Naruto crossed the divide between them to inspect his friend, closely followed by Sakura.

Sasuke looked out into the black ocean. Days seemed like an eternity to him, and yet, as they drew closer to their destination, he felt as though time had gone by too quickly. He didn't respond to his teammates and they tried everything to get him to snap out of it. Naruto went as far as challenging Sasuke to a duel, right there on the boat. Sakura quickly put an end to it, but a small part of Sasuke wished she hadn't; a fight might have taken his mind off their destination.

The air began to smell like Sound Territory, a mixture of trees and blood, bringing back memories Sasuke thought he could lock away. He heard screams, the splash of blood against a wall, felt the damp chill of dark places. Sasuke shuddered and tried to hide his face in his collar.

The boat slowed to a halt and bumped against a long wooden pier. All the muscles in Sasuke's body tightened to stone as he looked down the rickety bridge of a dock seeing nothing but fog engulfing the opposite end of it. He didn't know if he could detach his hands from the boat's steel guard rail. Little did he know, his companions shared his uneasiness.

Naruto and Sakura had been into Sound Territory only a handful of times, but none of those memories had been happy. Beyond those times, the only hints at what happened they got, were the looks on Sasuke's face. Every time the subject came up he looked sick, which only increased their curiosity more.

Indeed, right now, Sasuke looked very sick. Naruto stood three feet away from him, unsure whether his friend was going to crack the beam he clutched so tightly or throw up. It occurred to Naruto that Sasuke might do both and, from then on, stood _four _feet away from him.

A warm breeze plucked at Naruto's brown wig, but it wasn't a nice sort of breeze like in Zosho or Sea Breeze Island. This stuff was gross and sticky. It clung to the inside of Naruto's yellow shirt and made his neck feel oily. It was as though the air was rotting. He didn't want to breathe it; in fact, he didn't want to get off the boat, but the one-legged captain shooed them off cane. They were left on the edge of the creaking wooden pier watching the old man disappear into the humid fog.

Tentatively, they looked behind them. Supposedly, there was land somewhere on the other side, though, none of them wanted to reach it. In fact, Sakura was getting pretty comfortable with the plan of just staying right there on the moldy, lonely pier and living out the rest of Orochimaru's endless life there, but Sasuke stepped forward. And then he did it again. And again, until he was actually walking toward the shore.

"C'mon," he whispered hoarsely, "The sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave."

The other two didn't need much more motivation; they quickly scampered behind him as he walked stiffly through the mist. For several minutes, they walked in a void of white. Sakura began to wonder how far exactly was this pier, Naruto kept feeling like Zabuza was going to jump out and kill him. The path made several sharp turns and finally opened up to a larger, smellier dock. Other people meandered around on it, if you could call them people. They were more like shadows, all dressed in the same dirt brown cloak, faces turned to the ground.

The three passed a dusty immigration station. It had grown as one with a twenty-foot high wooden wall, which swooped around as far as they could see. The top was lined with spikes; a few seemed to be tinted the black of dried blood. At one time, not too long ago, the station may have seemed intimidating and foreboding, but now the entire wall had fallen to disrepair. The wooden columns smelled of piss and people had taken no time to carve chunks out of it; phrases started out as simple as "Ichigo was here" to large obscenities, sometimes sprawling 10 feet in length. The immigration house had been torn to pieces and looted, leaving nothing but the dying wooden frame and smashed out windows. With no one sitting at the post to meet them, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura moved into the town.

They stepped out onto a cracking cobble road covered with dirt, grime and filth. People were everywhere, walking down the main roadways, sitting against the rotting buildings, all drenched in the same dirt-colored robes. It felt as though everything was being played in slow motion. Few people talked, and if they did, they did so in hurried and hushed whispers. The wooden buildings, broken and beaten, hummed with the empty voices of the people inside.

Naruto felt like an unsightly blemish on the face of this town. He could _feel _people looking at him, but every time he turned his head, they immediately looked away. He had the distinct feeling that they were whispering about him too, but couldn't pick up any conversation.

The solemn shadows walked, heads down, through the streets. Many of them carried large packs on their backs or hauling wheelbarrows, the contents covered in the same brown cloth as their owners. All the people seemed to be moving in the same direction, toward the city gates.

"It's like everyone's leaving…" Sakura whispered.

"Maybe they're migrating," Naruto rubbed his chin, "like birds."

Sakura threw him a dirtier look than the road they were walking on.

"Idiot." She muttered.

"What?" He cried. "It's a possibility."

"With a city this broken, I wouldn't want to live here either." Sakura said, ignoring Naruto and looking at the monochrome of the buildings and people. "With Orochimaru gone, these people probably don't even have a police force or anything…"

"You're giving Orochimaru too much credit." Sasuke interjected harshly, speaking for the first time since they entered the port city. Both of his teammates perked up and stared at him. "It's been a long time, but…" He looked around. "I've been here before, with Orochimaru and, sure, some of the houses had windows, but it wasn't much different."

Sakura opened her mouth to say something, but couldn't think of anything, so she closed it again. Her unspoken words clogged the air and they fell into an uncomfortable silence. Naruto squirmed and searched drastically for something to break the tension.

"Um…" He began. "Shouldn't we find a place to stay for the night?"

Both the other two turned to look at him. Sakura gave him an incredulous look.

"Are you serious?" She asked.

"Um…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Yes?"

"Naruto, we're trying to reach the Northern Ribbon as quickly as possible!" She cried, slightly inclining her head toward Sasuke. They needed to get out of the country quickly for his sake. Sasuke seemed to pick up on this gesture.

"Yeah." He said. "Let's find a place to stay."

"What?" Sakura exclaimed. "But-"

"Don't worry about it." He said and walked off toward a side street. "It's not very good to travel around here at night anyway."

Naruto and Sakura trotted after him, wondering what he was concocting in his mind, but they soon found they had little time for that. Sasuke turned a corner on to a residential street and the hunt for shelter began. Finding an empty house was the easiest thing Naruto had ever done; most of the apartments were abandoned, but this too became a problem. The first place didn't have hot water, the place next to it had a cockroach problem, and the entire block next to those didn't have electricity. It became like Christmas shopping; so many gifts but none you could give to your mother.

Finally, they found a small place on the second floor of a complex about two blocks from the main road. The lights worked, the water worked… sort of, but some of the floorboards were loose. They all rolled out their sleeping bags and stared at each other, not knowing what to say. After a few minutes, they made a silent agreement to climb into their sleeping bags and go to bed,

-

Earlier that day, many miles from away, Neji stuck his hands in his pockets and stared down at the tablet labeled "Uzumaki Naruto." A brisk summer breeze whistled through row after row of grave markers and pushed his long hair into his face, but Neji didn't care. His mind kept floating back to the three people he'd seen in Zosho. He stared down at Naruto's grave as though it was a slug, disgusting, small, and not nearly adequate for Naruto. He wanted to kick it really hard.

Neji looked to his left, saw Shino standing beside him and looked back at the grave. Both stood in cold silence, ignoring each other, yet secretly curious as to why the other was there. On the rare occasion the Hokage gave you some time off, why would you spend it in the cemetery unless you had something hanging over your mind.

Unbeknown to the other, Shino felt the same way Neji did, except Shino understood why he want to kick the grave. It was a lie. Ever since Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura had been "cremated", Shino went to the cemetery every chance he got to see if the graves had been moved and the _real_ ashes had been put there. So far, there was no difference; the graves looked the same as ever.

The wind tossed a petal off the stem of the flower Hinata had brought earlier and it went tumbling against Shino's jacket and then away down the hill. The petal hit someone else as he made his way nonchalantly toward them, but neither Neji nor Shino cared to look.

"Neji, Shino." A voice called them out of their reflective trances. They both looked to the left and saw Shikamaru coming down the row towards them. Neji quickly deemed him less interesting than his morbid reflecting and turned back to the grave stone.

"What are you two doing here?" Shikamaru persisted as he came and stood next to Neji.

"Nothing." Neji said quickly. There was something reverberating in the word that made the two boys look at him. The snappy, reserved, yet resigned tone that Neji used led Shikamaru to believe that he was hiding something

Shikamaru leaned in to try and get a good look at Neji's face, but Neji avoided his gave.

"Neji," Shikamaru continued to glare into the boy's cheek, "I heard you just got back from Zosho. Tenten told Ino that you were acting strange towards the end. Could it be…" Shikamaru's glare intensified, "… that you saw something?"

Neji's head whipped around. Shino looked up from the grave stone, his sunglasses hiding wide eyes as he stared at Shikamaru.

_It couldn't be…?_

Neji and Shikamaru glared at each other. Shikamaru had the impression that Neji was staring right through his eyes, through his skull and into his brain, trying to figure out what was going on in there. After a minute, Neji turned back to the grave.

"No…" Neji muttered, not taking his eyes off Shikamaru. "Why..?"

Shikamaru straightened. He hadn't had a conversation this intense since he confronted that Sasuke-Look-A-Like… what was his name? Takkun or something. He was just opening his mouth to answer when another voice called out to them.

"Neji? Shino? Shikamaru?"

They all jumped as though they'd been caught spray painting Naruto's grave and turned to look.

"Iruka-sensei…" Shikamaru whispered, and so it was.

"Good afternoon." Iruka beamed at them at them as he made his way over. He clutched a cup of dry instant ramen in one hand and a coffee thermos in the other. "My, my, so many people coming to visit today. You have a lot of friends, Naruto."

He moved around Neji and approached the grave, placing the instant ramen next to Hinata's flowers. He peeled back the paper lid halfway, unscrewed the cap of the thermos and filled the noodle cup to the line with boiling water. He pulled the paper lid over the cooking ramen and reached into his pocket, producing a pair of chopsticks. Iruka pulled the chopstick from their wrapper and, without breaking them apart, stuck them upright into the cup-o-ramen. After replacing the cap on the thermos, Iruka straightened up and clapped his hands in prayer. Feeling a little foolish, Shikamaru, Neji and Shino did the same, then felt foolish for feeling foolish.

"Iruka-sensei," Shikamaru piped up. "Why instant ramen? I thought Naruto's favorite was Ichiraku's."

"It is." Iruka fingered his cheek, "but I can't afford that all the time. I'm on a teacher's salary." Iruka beamed sadly down at the cold rock slab. "I'll bring him Ichiraku this weekend." He whispered.

A pang of guilt ran down the spines of Shikamaru, Neji and Shino, though none of them understood it.

"You bring him ramen a lot, Iruka-sensei?" Shino chimed in. eager to shake off the feeling.

"As often as I can." Iruka smiled at him. It was a sad sort of smile, the kind men use when their masculinity prevents them from crying.

_This is bullshit._ Neji's fists tightened. He suddenly had the urge to kick Naruto's grave again.

"Iruka," He said. Iruka looked at him. "Don't you-" his fingernails bit into his palms. "What if they're.… Isn't it possible…?" _Just tell me I'm not insane!_

Neji took a deep breath

"What if they're not dead?"

Shikamaru and Shino shot straight upright, staring wide-eyed at Neji.

_Could it be..?_ Shikamaru's brain scrambled around as though it were on white hot coals. _He _did_ see something in Zosho!_

Iruka merely smiled and look sadly at Naruto's grave again.

"I _like_ to think he's alive somewhere." Iruka sighed. "Sometimes it would make more sense; it's hard to believe Naruto would be brought down by something as insignificant as an explosion, but I don't know if I think that that way because it's true or because I _want_ it to be true. Nothing would make me happier than to see him now, alive and well, but at a certain point, you have to just accept what's true. My brain says the Hokage-sama is right and he's dead, my heart makes up theories about him being alive somewhere, but all I know for certain is that he's not_ here_."

Iruka looked into the blue sky.

"I wish I had Kakashi-san's strength." He whispered.

"What about Kakashi-san?" Shino asked. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't seen Team Seven's leader since the recovery mission.

"Nothing, nothing." Iruka looked back down again and smiled.

"There's only one other thing I know for certain." He went on. "Wherever Naruto is now, whether it's this world or the next, he's with his closest friends. Wherever he is, he's happy."

-

Naruto was miserable. No matter how he tried, he couldn't sleep. His head felt hot under his wig.

_Whose stupid idea was it to wear these 24/7 anyway?_ _And why'd I have to suggest we stay here overnight anyway?_ He grumbled. _This town gives me the creeps._

He looked over at Sasuke, a dark huddled mass on his left. Naruto couldn't begin to imagine what was going on in his head. Naruto was no fool; Sasuke treated his days with Orochimaru like Gaara treated the days before he met Naruto. Naruto could see pain and anger behind those eyes. He'd been there too.

While Naruto's brain kept him awake with these thoughts, he hardly noticed that they had a visitor. A small figure poked its head from under a loose floorboard, saw three sleeping mounds and, more importantly, three traveling packs, and grinned. It moved the floor board aside and crept out of the hole, slithering toward the luggage. Looking cautiously at the sleeping residents, the small creature wiggled its greedy little fingers and silently pulled a bag toward itself.

As it struggled with the draw string latch, it heard a sound from the ground at its feet and felt something cold next to its big toe. It looked down at its sandal and saw a yellow-handled stainless steel dagger pinning the sole to the floor. A hand held the dagger in place. The intruder followed the arm to the yellow sleeping bag and came across the face of Naruto, glaring evilly at it in the dim moonlight. The creature jumped, or would have, if Naruto's dagger had not been there.

"Idiot." Naruto whispered. "Don't think that just because you're quiet I don't know you're there. And don't think just because _they _look asleep that they didn't know you were here either."

Before Naruto was halfway done with his sentence, the intruder had begun to pull its foot out of its shoe, slipping out and away from Naruto.

"Hey!" Naruto cried as the little figure bolted.

With some effort, Naruto wriggled his way out of the sleeping bag and dashed after the small creature. It slipped through the hole in the floor boards and moved them back just in time for Naruto to nose dive into them.

"Ow!"

By this time, both Sasuke and Sakura had pulled themselves free of their sleeping bags. Sasuke dashed for the door, Sakura yanked Naruto to his feet and followed Sasuke out. They all looked over the balcony and down to the ground floor where they saw a small figure running out from. A flickering street lamp doused the creature in light for a moment, just long enough for Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura to see that the small bandit wasn't some unearthly being, but, in fact, a child. It was dressed in dirt brown clothes and a hat that seemed 5 sizes too large that made it impossible to tell gender. They all vaulted off the balcony and began to chase after it.

For such a small person, it was very fast. It weaved in and out of alleyways, out running three well-trained ninja.

"That little…" Naruto cursed as the child slid under a fence. He scrambled over some trash cans and crawled over the spiked wood. His hand slipped and Naruto face-planted on the other side, nearly landing on top of the kid.

Naruto cursed again as Sasuke gracefully hurdled over the fence, landed on his feet beside Naruto and ran after the child. Naruto barely had time to think insults when Sakura came plowing through the fence like a bulldozer.

"Idiot, what are you doing, just sitting there?" She cried, grabbing his wrist and yanking him to his feet.

Sakura spotted the kid climbing up a drain pipe to the third floor of a nearby building. Sasuke had just reached the base of the structure when the kid hopped on to the third floor landing and ran toward an empty apartment. In direct line of sight, 100 feet away, Sakura locked on to her target. She glared and grabbed Naruto by the front of his shirt with one hand, the button front of his cargo shorts with the other.

"Wait, Sakura-chan, what are you-!" He blushed and flailed helplessly against her grasp.

"Think fast, Naruto!" She cried and with one swift motion, she lifted the protesting Naruto into the air and threw him like a javelin at their target.

"GYAAAAAHHH!" Naruto screamed as he flew through the air like a rocket. Then he realized he didn't have time for screaming; he was about to hit the third floor cement railing.

"Rasengan!" He cried, curling his hands together at his side, mixing the chakra into a tight ball. He smashed the sphere into the railing and it crumbled away like stale bread. The kid turned around to see the commotion, but only saw the nanosecond before Naruto came plummeting into it, grabbing the child around the waist. The two were sent smashing through the apartment door and tumbling into the room.

Shaking off his dizziness, Naruto pinned the kid to the floor. The child struggled like a dying animal until its hat fell off. Long blonde hair spilled out on to the floor and Naruto found himself on top of an angry, brown-eyed young girl. In realizing the awkwardness of his situation, Naruto let his guard slip and she head-butted him. Hard.

Naruto cried out, cursing, and tumbling off her, clutching his forehead in pain. The girl had underestimated how solid Naruto's head was and likewise clutched her temple and groaned.

As he messaged his forehead, Naruto snuck a peek at the girl. He could see very little of her face beneath the shadow of her hands; she was biting her lip in pain. Suddenly, she stopped, a sinister smile creeping over her mouth. Naruto ignored the blood running into his eyes and gawked at her.

A distant crash echoed from outside. Naruto jumped up and ran to the door. He squinted in the direction of the sound and saw the abandoned apartment where they were staying. Many other small creatures were leaving it, each carrying arm loads of goods, of which Naruto recognized his own personal belongings.

"Goddam it!"

* * *

Author's Note: Firstly, this chapter is dedicated to my roommate, who really helped me when I was stuck using the same words over and over. man, this chapter did not want to come out. I swear, everything got in my way of writing it. I made several fatal errors that took forever to correct and then when I looked at them again, I realized they weren't so fatal. >. Sorry this chapter is somewhat shorter that the last ones have been. I moved a lot of stuff around and took out about half of the chapter itself. Don't worry, it'll all make it's way back in there somehow.  
A little on the chapter: Firstly, if you couldn't tell, Orochimaru and Kabuto weren't in Zosho, I can't emphasize enough how Tsunade was seeing Sasuke and Sakura, not the other two. Also, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura aren't in the Sound Village yet, I wasn't very clear about that, but they're only in a port city at the moment. And lastly, you should all be hating Iruka right now. If he hadn't said all those mushy things about his opinions on Naruto's death, I'm certain Shikamaru, Neji and Shino would have spilled the beans to each other and would've figured the whole thing out. Funny how the only ninja who have some proof are those least likely to talk about it. ;) 

Next Chapter: The origins of the little brat! An a dillema for Sasuke! what will he dooo?


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